A 


%. 


^%. 


^^V 


S^^.  '"^^   A 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-S) 


1.0 


■^  IIIM 


I.I 


IIIM 
IIIM 

;II4£ 


1.25 


IIM 

120 
III— 

U    III  1.6 


Photographic 

Sciences 
Corporation 


,\ 


4- 


^s 


40^ 


\ 


\ 


<.'• 
< 


,V 


'^^  ..^  *?'■' 


'^^ 


6"^ 


23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  14580 

(716)  872-4503 


if 


if  MP 


c^. 


11 


CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHM/ICMH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Institute  for  Historical  Microreproductions  /  Institut  Canadian  de  microreproductions  historiquas 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notes/Notes  techniques  et  bibliographlques 


I 


The 
tot 


The  Institute  has  attempted  to  obtain  the  best 
original  copy  available  for  filming  Features  of  this 
copy  which  may  be  bibliographically  unique, 
which  may  alter  any  of  the  images  in  the 
reproduction,  or  which  may  significantly  change 
the  usual  method  of  filming,  are  checked  below. 


L'Institut  a  microfilm^  le  meilleur  exemplaire 
qu'il  lui  a  iti  possible  de  se  procurer.  Les  details 
da  cet  exemplaire  qui  sont  peut-Atre  uniques  du 
point  de  vue  bibliographique,  qui  peuvent  modifier 
une  image  reproduite.  ou  qui  peuvent  exiger  une 
modification  dans  la  mithode  normale  de  filmage 
sont  indiquto  ci-dessous. 


The 
pos 
oft 
film 


D 


Coloured  covers/ 
Couverture  de  couleur 


I      I    Covers  damaged/ 


n 


D 


□ 


n 


Couverture  endommag^e 

Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restaurie  et/ou  pelliculAe 


I      I    Cover  title  missing/ 


Le  titre  de  couverture  manque 


I      I    Coloured  maps/ 


Cartes  gAographiques  en  couleur 

Coloured  ink  (i.e.  other  than  blue  or  black)/ 
Encre  de  couleur  (i.e.  autre  que  bleue  ou  noire) 


I      I    Coloured  plates  and/or  illustrations/ 


Planches  et/ou  illustrations  en  couleur 

Bound  with  other  material/ 
Reli*  avec  d'autres  documents 

Tight  binding  may  cause  shadows  or  distortion 
along  interior  margin/ 

La  reiiure  serrde  peut  causer  de  I'ombre  ou  de  la 
distortion  le  long  de  la  marge  intirieure 

Blank  leaves  added  during  restoration  may 
appear  within  the  text.  Whenever  possible,  these 
have  been  omitted  from  filming/ 
II  se  peut  que  certaines  pages  blanches  ajout^es 
lors  d'une  restauration  apparaissent  dans  le  texte, 
mais,  lorsque  cela  6tait  possible,  ces  pages  n'ont 
pas  AtA  film6es. 


D 
D 

n 


y 


D 
D 
D 

n 


n 


Coloured  pages/ 
Pages  de  couleur 

Pages  damaged/ 
Pages  endommagies 

Pages  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Pages  restauries  et/ou  pellicul6es 

Pages  discoloured,  stained  or  foxed/ 
Pages  d^colories.  tacheties  ou  piqudes 

Pages  detached/ 
Pages  ddtachdes 

Showthrough/ 
Transparence 

Quality  of  print  varies/ 
Quality  in6gale  de  I'impression 

Includes  supplementary  material/ 
Comprend  du  materiel  suppl^mentaire 


Ori( 
oeg 
the 
sior 
oth( 
first 
sior 
or  11 


The 
shal 
TINI 
whii 

Map 
diffi 
entii 
begi 
righ 
reqt 
metl 


□    Only  edition  available/ 
Seule  Edition  disponible 


Pages  wholly  or  partially  obscured  by  errata 
slips,  tissues,  etc.,  have  been  refilmed  to 
ensure  the  best  possible  image/ 
Les  pages  totalement  ou  partiellement 
obscurcies  par  un  feuillet  d'errata,  une  pelure, 
etc..  ont  At6  filmAes  A  nouveau  de  fagon  A 
obtenir  la  meilleure  image  possible. 


D 


Additional  comments:/ 
Commentaires  supplAmentaires.- 


This  item  it  filmed  at  the  reduction  ratio  checked  below/ 

Ce  document  est  filmA  au  taux  de  reduction  indiquA  ci-dessous. 

10X  14X  18X  22X 


y 


26X 


30X 


12X 


16X 


20X 


24X 


28X 


32X 


[ails 
du 

jdifier 
une 
Tiage 


The  copy  filmed  here  hat  been  reproduced  thank* 
to  the  generosity  of: 

University  of  British  Columbia  Library 


The  images  appearing  here  are  the  best  quality 
possible  considering  the  condition  and  legibility 
of  the  original  copy  and  in  keeping  with  the 
filming  contract  specifications. 


Original  copies  in  printed  paper  covers  are  filmed 
oeginning  with  the  front  cover  and  ending  on 
the  last  page  with  a  print  d  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, or  the  back  cover  when  appropriate.  All 
other  original  copies  are  filmed  beginning  on  the 
first  page  with  a  printed  or  illustrated  impres- 
sion, and  ending  on  the  last  page  with  a  printed 
or  illustrated  impression. 


The  last  recorded  frame  on  each  microfiche 
shall  contain  the  symbol  — ^>  (meaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  the  symbol  V  (meaning  "END"), 
whichever  applies. 

Maps,  plates,  charts,  etc..  may  be  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Those  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  exposure  are  filmed 
beginning  in  the  upper  left  hand  corner,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  as 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  the 
method: 


L'exemplaire  film*  fut  reproduit  grAce  t  la 
gAnArosit6  de: 

University  of  British  Columbia  Library 


Les  images  suivantes  ont  6t6  reproduites  avec  le 
plus  grand  soin,  compte  tenu  de  la  condition  at 
de  la  nettet*  de  l'exemplaire  film*,  et  en 
conformity  avec  les  conditions  du  contrat  de 
filmage. 

Les  exemplaires  originaux  dont  la  couverture  an 
papier  est  imprim6e  sont  filmis  en  commen^ant 
par  le  premier  plat  et  en  terminant  soit  par  la 
derniire  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration,  soit  par  le  second 
plat,  seion  le  cas.  Tous  les  autres  exemplaires 
originaux  sont  fiim^s  en  commandant  par  la 
premiere  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration  et  en  terminant  par 
ia  derniAre  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 

Un  des  symboles  suivants  apparaltra  sur  la 
dernidre  image  de  chaque  microfiche,  selon  le 
cas:  le  symbols  — ^  signifie  "A  SUIVRE  ",  le 
symbols  V  signifie  "FIN". 

Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  Atre 
filmAs  A  des  taux  de  reduction  diffArents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  dtre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  clich«,  il  est  filmA  A  partir 
de  Tangle  supArieur  gauche,  da  gauche  A  droite, 
et  de  haut  en  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  nAcessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  mAthode. 


rrata 
:o 


pelure. 


□ 


32X 


1 

2 

3 

1 

t 

^     i  : 

4 

•  '     .- 

5 

6 

:> 


OLD  AND  NEW  MACKINAC ; 


WITH 


■  UN 


COPIOUS    EXTRACTS 


FROM 


MARQUETTE,  HENNEPIN,  lA  HOUTAN.  CADILLAC,  ALEXANDER  HENRY,  AND  OTHERS. 


"Beauteous  Isle!    I  sing  of  thee, 

Mackinac,  my  Mackinac, 
Thy  lake-bound  shores  I  love  to  see, 
Mackinac,  my  Mackinac. 
From  Arch  Rock's  bright  and  shelving  sttep 
To  western  cliffs  and  Lover's  Leap, 
Where  memories  of  the  lost  one  sleep, 
Mackinac,  my  Mackinac, 

"Thy  Northern  shore  trod  British  foe, 

Mackinac,  my  Mackinac, 
That  day  saw  gallant  Holmes  laid  low, 
Mackinac,  my  Mackinac. 
Now  Freedom's  flag  above  tliee  waves, 
And  guards  the  rest  of  fallen  braves, 
Their  requiem  sung  by  Huron's  waves, 
Mackinac,  my  M.ackinac." 


Bv  REV  J.  A.  VAN  FLEET,  M.  A. 


ANN  ARBOR,  MICH.: 

COURIER  STEAM  PRINTING-HOUSK,  41   »  43  NORTH  MAIN  STREET. 

1870, 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress  in  the  year  1870,  by 

J.  A.  VAN  FLEET, 

la  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  Eastern  District  of  Michigan, 


1 
: 

•i 

; 


PREFACE. 


In  the  preparation  of  this  little  volume,  I  have  carefully  exam- 
ined the  following  works  :  Holmes'  American  Annals,  two  volumes  ; 
Robertson's  History  of  America;  Bancroft's  United  States;  Bell's 
Canada,  two  volumes;  Albach's  Annals  of  the  West;  Lahnman's 
Michigan;  Sheldon's  Early  Michigan;  Historical  and  Scientific 
Sketches  of  Michigan ;  Neill's  Minnesota;  Smith's  Wisconsin,  three 
volumes;  Wynne's  General  History  of  the  British  Empire;  Rogers' 
Concise  Account  of  North  America;  Dillon's  Early  Settlement  of  the 
North-Western  Territory;  Heriot's  Canada;  Parkman's  Pontiac; 
Parkman's  Discovery  of  the  Great  West;  Schoolcraft's  Works,  com- 
plete; Documentary  History  of  New  York,  complete;  Palmer's  His- 
torical Register,  1814;  Shea's  Discovery  and  Exploration  of  the 
Mississippi, — also,  Catholic  Missions;  Hennepin;  La  Houtan,  two 
volumes;  Charlevoix,  two  volumes;  Alexander  Henry;  Carver;  Dis- 
turnell;  Newcomb's  Cyclopedia  of  Missions;  American  Missions  to 
the  Heathen;  Geological  Reports  by  Foster  and  Whitney,  and  by 
Professor  Winchell  ;  Thatcher's  Indian  Biography,  two  volumes; 
Strickland's  Old  Mackinaw;  Drake's  Northern  Lakes  and  Southern 
Invalids,— also,  Diseases  of  the  Mississippi  Valley,  by  the  same 
author. 

I  am  also  greatly  indebted  to  Messrs.  Ambrose  and  William 
Davenport  for  a  detailed  account  of  the  War  of  1812  in  its  connection 
with  this  Island.  These  gentlemen  were  boys  of  from  twelve  to  fifteen 
years  of  age  at  the  time,  and  were  eye-witnesses  of  all  that  passed. 
Their  account  agrees,  in  every  important  particular,  with  the  oflici! 
returns  of  Commodore  Sinclair  and  Colonel  Croghan,  but  is,  «. 
course,  much  more  minute. 


tv 


PREFACE. 


Several  other  citizens  of  the  place  have  likewise  rendered  valuable 
assistance  in  matters  falling  within  the  scope  of  their  recollection.  I 
also  desire  to  acknowledge  my  obligation  to  Edgar  Conkling,  Esq.,  of 
Mackinaw  City,  for  valuable  notes  and  suggestions,  and  to  H.  R. 
Mills,  M.  D.,  of  Fort  Mackinac,  and  Rev.  J.  M.  Arnold,  of  Detroit,  for 
assistance  in  getting  the  work  through  the  press. 

This  book  has  been  prepared  to  meet  a  want  long  felt  and  often 

expressed  by  the  many  who  throng  this  Island  in  quest  of  health  or 

pleasure  during  the  summer.    That  it  may  accomplish  this  end,  is  the 

earnest  wish  of  the  author, 

J.  A.  V. 
Mackinac,  July  4,  1870 


red  valuable 
tllection.  I 
ng,  Esq.,  of 
d  to  H.  R. 
Detroit,  for 

t  and  often 
>f  health  or 
s  end,  is  the 

.  A.  V. 


CHAPTER  I. 


JESUIT   HISTORY. 

The  first  pole-faces  who  ventured  into  the  region  stretching 
around  the  great  lakes,  were  Jesuit  missionaries.  Of  these, 
the  first  who  claim  a  notice  here  are  the  Fathers  Charles 
Raynibault  and  Isaac  Jogues.  In  1641,  these  two  men  visited 
the  Chippcwas  at  the  Sault  and  established  a  mission  among 
them,  but  Raymbault  soon  after  fell  a  victim  to  consumption, 
and  the  eiiterprise  was  abandoned.  Desperate  Indian  wars, 
which  soon  followed,  prevented  any  further  attempt  to  estab- 


OLD   AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


lisli  missions  among  the  Indians  around  the  lakes  for  nearly 
thirty  years. 

In  the  spring  of  1668,  the  illustrious  Father,  James  Mar- 
quette, was  ordered  to  repair  to  the  Ottawa  mission,  as  that 
around  Lake  Superior  was  then  called.  Arriving  at  the  Sault, 
he  planted  his  cabin  at  the  foot  of  the  rapids,  on  the  American 
side,  and  began  his  work.  In  the  following  year  he  was  joined 
by  Father  Dablon,  Superior  of  the  mission,  an  J  by  their  united 
exertions  a  church  was  soon  built.  This  was  the  first  perman- 
ent settlement  made  on  the  soil  of  Michigan. 

During  that  same  year,  Marquette  repaired  to  Lapointe, 
near  the  western  extremity  of  Lake  Superior,  leaving  Dablon 
to  continue  the  mission  at  the  Sault.  When  he  arrived  at  his 
new  field  of  labor,  he  found  several  Indian  villages,  one  of 
which  was  composed  of  Hurons,  who,  several  years  before, 
had  dwelt,  for  a  short  time,  on  Mackinac  Island. 

Previous  to  leaving  the  Sault,  Marquette  had  heard  vague 
reports  of  the  "  Great  River,"  and  had  formed  the  design  of 
one  day  exploring  it  and  preaching  the  gospel  to  those  far-off 
nations  who  dwelt  upon  its  banks.  That  he  might  carry  out 
this  design,  he  obtained,  while  at  Lapointe,  an  Illinois  captive, 
and  diligently  studied  the  language,  hoping  that  he  would  be 
permitted  to  visit  that  people  in  the  following  Fall.  But  in 
this  he  was  doomed  to  disappointment.  A  war  which  broke 
out  between  the  Sioux,  and  the  Hmons  and  Ottawas,  com- 
pelled the  two  last  mentioned  tribes  to  leave  Lapointe  and  seek 
a  new  home.  Marquette's  lot  was  cast  with  the  Hurons,  who 
embarked  in  their  frail  canoes,  descended  the  rapids  of  St. 
Mary's,  and,  "  remembering  the  rich  fisheries  of  Mackinac, 
resolved  to  return  to  that  pebbly  strand."  Having  fixed  upon 
a  place  of  abode,  the  missionary's  first  thought  was  the  estab- 
lishment of  a  mission  for  the  spiritual  good  of  his  savage  fol- 
lowers. While  making  the  necessary  preparations  for  the 
erection  of  a  chapel  and  the  permanent  founding  of  his  colony, 
he  dwelt  on  this  island. 

The  following  extract  is  from  a  letter  written  by  Marquette 


JESUIT    HISTORY. 


br  nearly 

nes  Mar- 
1,  as  that 
;he  Sault, 
Vmerican 
'as  joined 
eir  united 
;  perman- 

Lapointe, 
ET  Dablon 
etl  at  his 
5,  one  of 
s  before, 

rd  vague 

design  of 

se  far-off 

arr^  out 

captive, 

voukl  be 

But  in 

;h  broke 

'■as,  com- 

and  seek 

)ns,  who 

Is  of  St. 

ackinac, 

ed  upon 

ic  estab- 

^■age  fol- 

for  the 

colony, 

arquette 


in  1671,  and  published  in  the  Relations  des  yesuits  of  that 
year: 

"  Michilimackinac  is  an  island  famous  in  these  regions,  of 
more  than  a  league  in  diameter,  and  elevated  in  some  places 
by  such  high  clifls  as  to  be  seen  more  than  twelve  leagues  off. 
It  is  situated  just  in  the  strait  forming  the  communication 
between  Lakes  Huron  and  Illinois  (Michigan).  It  is  the  key, 
and,  as  it  were,  the  gate,  for  all  the  'iribes  from  the  south,  as 
tlie  Sault  is  for  those  of  the  north,  there  being  in  this  section 
of  country  only  those  two  passages  by  water,  for  a  great  num- 
ber of  nations  have  to  go  by  one  or  other  of  these  channels,  in 
order  to  reach  the  French  settlements. 

"  This  presents  a  peculiarly  favorable  opportunity,  both 
for  instructing  those  who  pass  here,  and  also  for  obtaining  easy 
access  and  conveyance  to  their  places  of  abode. 

"  This  place  is  the  most  noted  in  these  regions  for  the 
abundance  of  its  fisheries ;  for,  according  to  the  Indian  saying, 
'  this  is  the  home  of  the  fishes.*  Elsewhere,  although  they 
exist  in  large  numbers,  it  is  not  properly  their  '  home,'  which 
is  in  the  neighborhood  of  Michilimackinac. 

"  In  fact,  beside  the  fish  common  to  all  the  chfr  tribes,  as 
the  herring,  carp,  pike,  gold-fish,  white-fish,  and  sturgeon, 
there  are  found  three  varieties  of  the  trout — one  common  ;  the 
second  of  a  larger  size,  three  feet  long  and  one  foot  thick ;  the 
third  monstrous,  for  we  cannot  otherwise  describe  it — it  being 
so  fat  that  the  Indians,  who  have  a  peculiar  relish  for  fats,  can 
scarcely  eat  it.  Besides,  the  supply  is  such  that  a  single  Indian 
will  take  forty  or  fifty  of  them  through  the  ice,  with  a  single 
spear,  in  three  hours. 

"  It  is  this  attraction  which  has  heretofore  drawn  to  a 
point  so  advantageous  the  greater  part  of  the  savages  in  this 
country,  driven  away  by  fear  of  the  Iroquois.  The  three 
tribes  at  present  living  on  the  Baye  des  Puans  (Green  Bay) 
as  strangers,  formerly  dwelt  on  the  main  land  near  the  middle 
of  this  island — some  on  the  borders  of  Lake  Illinois,  others  on 
the  borders  of  Lake  Huron.     A  part  of  them,  called  Sauteurs^ 


i«^^ 


I 


I 


1 


111. 


OLD   AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


had  their  abode  on  the  main  land  at  the  west,  and  the  others 
look  upon  this  place  as  their  country  for  passing  the  winter, 
when  there  are  no  fish  at  the  Sault.  The  Hurons,  called  Eto- 
nontathronnons^  have  lived  for  some  years  in  the  siime  island, 
to  escajje  the  Iroquois.  Four  villages  of  Ottawas  had  also 
their  abode  in  this  quarter. 

"  It  is  worthy  of  notice  that  those  who  bore  the  name  of 
the  island,  and  called  themselves  Michilimackinac,  were  so 
numerous  that  some  of  the  survivors  yet  living  here  assure  us 
that  they  once  h-'ul  thirty  villages,  all  enclosed  in  a  fortification 
of  a  league  and  a  half  in  circuit,  when  the  Iroquois  came  and 
defeated  them,  inflated  by  a  victory  they  had  gained  over  three 
thousand  men  of  that  nation,  who  had  carried  their  hostilities 
as  far  as  the  country  of  the  Agnichronnons. 

"  In  one  word,  the  quantity  of  fish,  united  with  the  excel- 
lence of  the  soil  for  Indian  corn,  has  always  been  a  powerful 
attraction  to  the  tribes  in  these  regions,  of  which  the  greater 
part  subsist  only  on  fish,  but  some  on  Indian  corn.  On  this 
account  many  of  these  same  tribes,  perceiving  that  the  peace 
is  likely  to  be  established  with  the  Iroquois,  haVe  turned  their 
attention  t9  this  point,  so  convenient  for  a  return  to  their  own 
country,  and  will  follow  the  examples  of  those  who  have  made 
a  beginning  on  the  islands  of  Lake  Huron,  which  by  this 
means  will  soon  be  peopled  from  one  end  to  the  other,  an  event 
highly  desirable  to  facilitate  the  instruction  of  the  Indian  race, 
whom  it  would  not  be  necessary  to  seek  by  journeys  of  two  or 
three  hundred  leagues  on  these  great  lakes,  with  inconceivable 
danger  and  hardship. 

"  In  order  to  aid  the  execution  of  the  design,  signified  to 
us  by  many  of  the  savages,  of  taking  up  their  abode  at  this 
point,  where  some  have  already  passed  the  winter,  hunting  in 
the  neighborhood,  we  ourselves  have  also  wintered  here,  in 
order  to  make  arrangements  for  establishing  the  mission  of  St. 
Ignace^  from  whence  it  will  be  easy  to  have  access  to  all  the 
Indians  of  Lake  Huron,  when  the  several  tribes  shall  have 
settled  each  on  Its  own  lands. 


JESUIT    HISTORY. 


cl  the  Others 
the  whiter, 
,  called  Eto- 
same  island, 
as  had  also 

the  name  of 
lac,  were  so 
re  assure  us 
I  fortification 
is  came  and 
sd  over  three 
:ir  hostilities 

th  the  excel- 
a  powerful 
the  greater 
rn.  On  this 
it  the  peace 
turned  their 
o  their  own 

0  have  made 
iich  by  this 
her,  an  event 
Indian  race, 
ys  of  two  or 
iconceivable 

signified  to 
bode  at  this 
,  hunting  in 
red  here,  in 
ission  of  St. 
5S  to  all  the 

1  shall  have 


*'  With  these  advantages,  the  place  has  also  its  inconveni- 
ences, particularly  for  the  French,  who  are  not  yet  familiar,  as 
are  the  savages,  with  the  different  kinds  of  fisher}',  in  which 
the  latter  are  trained  from  their  birth  ;  the  winds.  '>\  the  tides 
occasion  no  small  embarrassment  to  the  fishermen. 

"  The  winds :  For  this  is  the  central  r'^iut  between  the 
three  great  lakes  which  surround  it,  and  ,.;iich  soem  inces- 
santly ..sing  ball  at  each  other.  For  no  sooner  h:i<%  the  wind 
ceased  blowing  from  Lake  Michigan  than  Lake  Huron  hurls 
back  the  gale  it  has  received,  and  Lake  Superior  in  its  turn 
sends  forth  its  blasts  from  another  quarter,  and  thus  the  game 
is  played  from  one  to  the  other ;  and  as  these  lakes  are  of  vast 
extent,  the  winds  cannot  be  otherwise  than  boisterous,  espe- 
cially during  the  autumn." 

From  this  letter  we  conclude  that  Marquette  must  have 
come  to  Michilimackinac  in  1670,  as  he  spent  a  winter  here 
before  the  establishment  of  his  mission.  Point  Iroquois,  on 
the  north  side  of  the  Straits,  was  selected  as  the  most  suitable 
place  for  the  proposed  mission,  and  there,  in  1671,  a  rude  and 
unshapely  chapel,  its  sides  of  logs  and  its  roof  of  bark,  was 
raised  as  "the  first  sylvan  shrine  of  Catholicity,"  at  Mackinaw. 
This  primitive  temple  was  as  simple  as  the  faith  taught  by  the 
devoted  missionary,  and  had  nothing  to  impress  the  senses, 
nothing  to  win  by  a  dazzling  exterior  the  wayward  children  of 
the  forest.  The  new  mission  was  called  St.  Ignatius,  in  honor 
of  the  founder  of  the  Jesuit  orde«-,  and  to  this  day  the  name  is 
perpetuated  in  the  point  upon  whicn  the  mission  stood. 

During  the  summer  of  1671  an  event  ocurred  of  no  com- 
mon interest  and  importance  in  the  annals  of  French  history 
in  America,  but  which,  after  all,  was  not  destined  to  exert  any 
lasting  influence.  Mutual  interests  had  long  conspired  to  unite 
the  Algonquins  of  the  west  and  the  French  in  confirmed 
friendship.  The  Algonquins  desired  commerce  and  protection  ; 
the  French,  while  they  coveted  the  rich  furs  which  these  tribes 
brought  them,  coveted  also  an  extension  of  political  power  to 
the  utmost  limits  of  the  western  wilderness.     Hence,  Nicholas 


^!i! 


lO 


OLD   AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


Perrot  had  been  commissioned  as  the  agent  of  the  French  gov- 
ernment, to  call  a  general  Congress  of  the  lake  tribes  at  the 
Falls  of  St.  Mary.  The  invitations  of  this  enthusiastic  agent 
of  the  Bourbcn  dynasty  reached  the  tribes  of  Lake  Superior, 
and  were  carried  even  to  the  wandering  hordes  of  the  remotest 
north.  Nor  were  the  nations  of  the  south  neglected.  Obtain- 
ing an  escort  of  Potawatomies  at  Green  Bay,  Perrot,  the  first 
of  Europeans  to  visit  that  place,  repaired  to  the  Miumis  at 
Chicago,  on  the  same  mission  of  friendship. 

In  May  the  day  appointed  for  the  unwonted  spectacle  of 
the  Congress  of  Nations  arrived.  St.  Lusson  was  the  French 
official,  and  Allouez  his  interpreter.  From  the  head  waters  of 
the  St.  Lawrence,  from  the  Mississippi,  from  the  Great  Lakes, 
and  even  from  the  Red  River,  envoys  of  the  wild  republicans 
of  the  wilderness  were  present.  And  brilliantly  clad  officers 
from  the  veteran  armies  of  France,  with  here  and  there  a 
Jesuit  missionary,  completed  the  vast  assembly.  A  cross  was 
set  up,  a  cedar  post  marked  with  the  French  lilies,  and  the 
representatives  of  the  wilderness  tribes  were  informed  that  they 
were  under  the  protection  of  the  French  king.  Thus,  in  the 
presence  of  the  ancient  races  of  America,  were  the  authority 
and  the  faith  of  France  uplifted  in  the  very  heart  of  our  Con- 
tinent. But  the  Congress  proved  only  an  echo  soon  to  die 
away,  and  left  no  abiding  monument  to  mark  its  glory. 

Marquette  has  left  no  details  of  his  first  year's  labor  in  his 
new  mission,  but  during  the  second  year  he  wrote  the  following 
letter  to  Father  Dablon.  This  letter  has  been  published  from 
the  manuscript,  by  John  G.  Shea,  in  his  ''Discovery  and  Ex- 
ploration of  the  Mississippi,"  and  to  him  we  are  indebted 
for  it^ 

"  Rev.  Fathek, — The  Hurons,  called  Tionnontateron- 
nons  or  Petun  nation,  who  compose  the  mission  of  St.  Ignatius 
at  Michilimackinong,  began  last  year  near  the  chapel  a  fort 
enclosing  all  their  cabins.  They  have  come  regularly  to 
prayers,  and  have  listened  more  readily  to  the  instructions  I  gave 
them,  consenting  to  what  I  required  to  prevent  their  disorders 


JESUIT    HISTORV. 


II 


?'rench  gov- 
ibes  at  the 
astic  agent 
2  Superior, 
lie  remotest 
I.  Obtain- 
t,  the  first 
Miamis  at 

pectacle  of 
he  French 
1  waters  of 
eat  Lakes, 
epublicans 
ad  officers 
d  there   a 

cross  was 
s,  and  the 
;d  that  they 
lus,  hi  the 
;  authority 

our  Con- 
ion  to  die 
y. 

ibor  in  his 
:  following 
shed  from 
/'  and  Ex- 
indebted 

ontateron- 
t.  Ignatius 
pel  a  fort 
jularly  to 
ons  I  gave 
disorders 


and  abominable  customs.  We  must  have  patience  with  un- 
tutored minds,  who  know  only  the  devil,  who,  like  their  ances- 
tors, have  been  his  slaves,  and  who  often  relapse  into  the  sins 
in  which  they  were  nurtui-ed.  God  alone  can  fix  these  fickle 
minds,  and  place  and  keep  them  in  his  grace,  and  touch  their 
hearts  while  we  stammer  at  their  ears. 

"  The  Tionnontateronnons  .number  this  year  three  hundred 
and  eighty  souls,  and  besides  sixty  Outaouasinagaux  have  joined 
them.  Some  of  these  came  from  the  mission  of  St.  Francis 
Xavier,  where  Father  Andre  wintered  with  them  last  year ; 
they  are  quite  changed  from  what  I  saw  them  at  Lapointe  ;  the 
zeal  and  patience  of  that  missionary  have  gained  to  the  faith 
those  hearts  which  seemed  to  us  most  averse  to  it.  They  now 
wish  to  be  Christians  ;  they  bring  their  children  to  the  chapel 
to  be  baptized,  and  come  regularly  to  prayers. 

"  Plaving  been  obliged  to  go  to  St.  Marie  du  Sault  with 
Father  Allouez  last  summer,  the  Hurons  came  to  the  chapel 
during  my  absence  as  regularly  as  if  I  had  been  there,  the  girls 
singing  what  prayers  they  knew.  They  counted  the  days  of 
my  absence,  and  constantly  asked  when  I  was  to  be  back.  I 
was  absent  only  fourteen  days,  and  on  my  arrival  all  assembled 
at  chapel,  some  coming  even  from  their  fields,  which  are  at  a 
very  considerable  distance. 

,  "  I  went  readily  to  their  pumpkin  feast,  where  I  instructed 
them,  ai.d  invited  them  to  thank  God,  who  gave  them  food  in 
plenty,  while  other  tribes  that  had  not  yet  embrace<l  Christian- 
ity were  actually  struggling  with  famine.  I  ridiculed  dreams, 
and  urged  those  who  had  been  baptized  to  acknowledge  Him 
whose  adopted  children  they  were.  Those  who  gave  the  feast, 
though  still  idolaters,  spoke  in  high  terms  of  Ciiristiauity,  and 
openly  made  the  sign  of  the  cross  before  all  present.  Some 
young  men,  whom  they  had  tried  by  ridicule  to  prevent  from 
doing  it,  persevered,  and  make  the  sign  of  the  cross  in  the 
gi'eatcst  assemblies,  even  when  I  am  not  present. 

"  An  Indian  of  distinction  among  the  Hurons,  having  in- 
vited me  to  a  feast  where  the  chiefs  were,  called  them  severally 


T" 


12 


OLD   AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


by  name,  and  told  them  that  he  wished  to  declare  his  thoughts, 
that  all  might  know  it,  namely,  that  he  was  a  Christian  ;  that 
he  renounced  the  god  of  dreams  and  all  their  lewd  dances ; 
that  the  black-gown  was  master  of  his  cabin ;  and  that  for 
nothing  that  might  happen  would  he  forsake  his  resolution. 
Delighted  to  hear  this,  I  spoke  more  strongly  than  I  had  ever 
yet  done,  telling  them  that  my  only  design  was  to  put  them  in 
the  way  of  heaven ;  that  for  this  alone  I  remained  among 
them ;  that  this  obliged  me  to  assist  them  at  the  peril  of  my 
life.  As  soon  as  anything  is  said  in  an  assembly,  it  is  immedi- 
ately divulged  through  all  the  cabins,  as  I  saw  in  this  case  by 
the  assiduity  of  some  in  coming  to  prayers,  and  by  the  mali- 
cious efforts  of  others  to  neutralize  my  instructions. 

"  Severe  as  the  winter  is,  it  does  not  prevent  the  Indians 
from  coming  to  the  chapel.  Some  come  twice  a  day,  be  the 
wind  or  cold  what  it  may.  Last  foil  I  began  to  instruct  some 
to  make  general  confessions  of  their  whole  life,  and  to  prepare 
others  who  had  never  confessed  since  their  baptism.  I  would 
not  have  supposed  that  Indians  could  have  given  so  e..act  an 
account  of  all  that  had  happened  in  the  course  of  their  life; 
but  it  was  seriously  done,  as  some  took  two  weeks  to  examine 
themselves.  Since  then  I  have  perceived  a  marked  change,  so 
that  they  will  not  go  even  to  ordinar}'  feasts  without  asking  my 
permission. 

"  I  havj  this  year  baptized  twenty-eight  children,  one  of 
which  had  been  brought  from  Ste.  Marie  du  Sault,  without 
having  received  that  sacrament,  as  the  Rev.  F.  Henry  Nouvel 
informed  me,  to  put  me  on  my  guard.  Without  my  knowing 
it,  the  child  fell  sick,  but  God  permitted  that  while  instructing 
in  my  cabin  two  important  and  sensible  Indians,  one  asked  me 
whether  such  a  sick  child  was  baptized.  I  went  at  once,  bap- 
tized it,  and  it  died  the  next  night.  Some  of  the  other  children 
too,  are  dead,  and  now  in  heaven.  These  are  the  consolations 
which  God  sends  us,  which  make  us  esteem  our  life  more 
happy  as  it  is  more  wretched. 

"  This,  Father,  is  all  I  have  to  give  about  this  mission ; 


JESUIT    HISTORY. 


I# 


his  thoughts, 
iristian ;  that 
2wcl  dances ; 
and  that  for 
s  resolution. 
1  I  had  ever 

put  them  in 
lined   among 

peril  of  my 
it  is  immedi- 
this  case  by 
by  the  mali- 

la 

the  Indians 
day,  be  the 
nstruct  some 
d  to  prepare 
n.  I  would 
so  e..act  an 
of  their  life ; 
>  to  examine 
;d  change,  so 
ut  asking  my 

dren,  one  of 
^ult,  without 
enry  Nouvel 
my  knowing 
e  instructing 
•ne  asked  me 
It  once,  bap- 
ther  children 
consolations 
ur  life  more 

his  mission ; 


i 


I 


where  minds  are  now  more  mild,  tractable,  and  better  disposed 
to  receive  instruction,  than  in  any  other  part.  I  am  ready, 
however,  to  leave  it  in  the  hands  of  another  missionary  to  go 
on  your  order  to  seek  new  nations  toward  the  south  sea  who 
are  still  unknown  to  us,  and  to  teach  them  of  our  great  God, 
whom  they  have  hitherto  unknown." 

While  Marquette  was  thus  engaged  in  the  labors  of  his 
mission,  his  project  for  discovering  and  exploring  the  Missis- 
sippi had  attracted  the  attention  of  the  French  government, 
and  through  the  influence  of  M.  Talon,  the  intcndant,  a  reso- 
lution had  been  formed  to  act  in  the  matter  at  once.  It  is 
worthy  of  remark  that  the  French,  supposing  that  the  Mississippi 
might  empty  into  the  Gulf  of  California,  hoped  in  discovering 
that  river  to  find  also  a  short  passage  across  the  continent  to 
China.  Having  once  formed  the  resolution  to  go  in  search  of 
the  Great  River,  they  were  not  long  in  making  all  needful  prep- 
aration for  putting  it  into  execution. 

Sieur  Joliet  was  designated  as  the  agent  of  the  French 
government  to  carry  out  the  design,  and  Marquette  was  to 
accompany  him.  But  little  is  known  of  Joliet  except  in  his 
connection  with  this  one  enterprise,  which  alone  is  sufficient  to 
immortalize  his  name.  The  following  extract  is  taken  from 
Shea's  "  Discovery  and  Exploration  of  the  Mississippi  Valley." 
It  is  from  the  pen  of  Father  Dablon,  and  will  give  sufficient 
information  concerning  him  to  serve  the  present  purpose  : 

"  They  were  not  mistaken  in  their  choice  of  the  Sieur  Jo- 
liet, for  he  was  a  young  man,  born  in  this  country,  and  endowed 
with  every  quality  that  could  be  desired  in  such  an  enterprise. 
He  possessed  experience,  and  a  knovv^ ledge  of  the  languages  of 
the  Ottawa  country,  where  he  had  speiit  several  years  ;  he  had 
the  tact  and  prudence  so  necessary  for  the  success  of  a  voyage 
equally  dangerous  and  difficult ;  and,  lastly,  he  had  courage  to 
fear  nothing  where  all  is  to  be  feared.  He  accordingly  fulfilled 
the  ex  ctations  entertained  of  him,  and  if,  after  having  passed 
through  dangers  of  a  thousand  kinds,  he  had  not  unfortunately 
been  wrecked  in  the  very  harbor — his  canoe  having  upset  below 


T 


fTT 


t 


H 


OLD   AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


the  Saut  St.  Louis,  near  Montreal,  where  he  lost  his  men  and 
papers,  and  only  escaped,  by  a  kind  of  miracle,  with  his  life — 
the  success  of  his  voyage  had  left  nothing  to  be  desired." 

When  the  Ottawa  flotilla  of  1672  brought  back  from 
Qiiebec  the  news  that  his  long  cherished  desire  was  about  to 
be  gratified,  Marquette  exulted  at  the  prospect  before  him.  It 
involved  danger  and  hardship ;  the  way  was  blocked  up  by 
hostile  Indian  tribes,  and  his  health  was  already  imj^aired  by 
the  trials  and  privations  which  had  fallen  to  his  lot,  but  no  con- 
sideration of  personal  safety  could  deter  him  from  his  purpose.  ^ 
He  even  gloried  in  the  prospect  of  martyrdom. 

Joliet,  at  lenyih,  arrived  at  the  mission,  and  together  they 
spent  the  winter  in  making  the  necessary  arrangements  for  the 
voyage.  The  following  quotation  is  from  Marquette's  own 
narrative,  as  published  by  Shea  : 

"  The  day  of  the  Immaculate  Conception  of  the  Blessed 
Virgin,  whom  I  had  always  invoked  since  I  have  been  in  this 
Ottawa  country,  to  obtain  of  God  the  grace  to  be  able  to  visit 
the  nations  on  the  river  Mississippi,  was  identically  that  on 
which  M.  Joliet  arrived  with  orders  of  the  Comte  de  Frontenac, 
our  governor,  and  M.  Talon,  our  intendant,  to  make  this  dis- 
covery with  me.  I  was  the  more  enraptured  at  this  good  news, 
as  I  saw  my  designs  on  the  point  of  being  accomplished,  and 
myself  in  the  happy  necessity  of  exposing  my  life  for  the  salva- 
tion of  all  these  nations,  and  particularly  for  the  Illinois,  who 
had,  when  I  was  at  Lapointe  du  St.  Esprit,  very  earnestly  en- 
treated me  to  carry  the  woi'd  of  God  to  their  country. 

"  We  were  not  long  in  preparing  our  outfit,  although  we 
were  embarking  on  a  voyage  the  duration  of  which  we  could 
not  foresee.  Indian  corn,  with  some  dried  meat,  was  our  whole 
stock  of  provisions.  With  this  we  set  out  in  two  bark  canoes, 
M.  Joliet,  myself,  and  five  men,  firmly  resolved  to  do  all  and 
suffer  all,  for  so  glorious  an  enterprise. 

"  It  was  on  the  17th  of  May,  1673,  that  we  started  from 
the  mission  of  St.  Ignatius,  at  Michilimackinac,  where  I  then 
was.     Our  joy  at  being  chosen  for  this  expedition  roused  our 


Li 


JESUIT    HISTORY, 


t$ 


his  men  and 
with  his  life — 
lesired." 
it  back  from 
was  about  to 
sfore  him.  It 
locked  up  by 

impaired  by 
)t,  but  no  con- 
1  his  purpose.  % 

together  they 
ments  for  the 
•quette's  own 

f  the  Blessed 

been  in  this 

able  to  visit 

ally  that  on 

le  Frontenac, 

ake  this  dis- 

is  good  news, 

plished,  and 

for  the  salva- 

Illinois,  who 

earnestly  en- 

try. 

although  we 
h  we  could 
as  our  whole 
Dark  canoes, 
I  do  all  and 

started  from 

vheve  I  then 

roused  our 


^ 


courage,  and  sweetened  the  labor  of  rowing  from  morning  till 
night.  As  we  were  going  to  seek  unknown  countries,  we  took 
all  possible  precautions,  that,  if  our  enterprise  was  hazardous, 
it  should  not  be  foolhardy.  For  this  reason  we  gathered  all 
possible  information  from  Indians  who  had  frequented  those 
parts,  and  even  from  their  accounts  traced  a  map  of  all  the  new 
country,  marking  down  the  rivers  on  which  we  were  to  sail, 
the  names  of  the  nations  and  places  through  which  we  were  to 
pass,  the  course  of  the  great  river,  and  what  direction  we 
should  take  when  we  got  to  it. 

"  Above  all,  I  put  our  voyage  under  the  protection  of  the 
Blessed  Virgin  Immaculate,  promising  her,  that  if  she  did  us 
the  grace  to  discover  the  great  river,  I  would  give  it  the  name 
of  Conception ;  and  that  I  would  also  give  that  name  to  the 
first  mission  which  I  should  establish  among  these  new  nations, 
as  I  have  actually  done  among  the  Illinois. 

"  With  all  these  precautions,  we  made  our  paddles  play 
merrily  over  a  part  of  Lake  Huron,  and  that  of  the  Illinois, 
into  the  Bay  of  the  Fetid  (Green  Bay).  The  first  nation  that  we 
met  was  that  of  the  Wild  Oats,  (English,  wild  rice).  I  en- 
tered their  river  (Menomonie)  to  visit  them,  as  we  have 
-reached  the  gospel  to  these  tribes  for  some  years  past,  so  that 
there  are  many  good  Christians  among  them. 

"  I  informed  these  people  of  the  Wild  Oats  of  my  design 
of  going  to  discover  distant  nations  to  instruct  them  in  the  mys- 
teries of  our  Holy  Religion ;  they  were  very  much  surprised, 
and  did  their  best  to  dissuade  me.  They  told  me  that  I  would 
meet  nations  that  never  spare  strangers,  but  tomahawk  them 
without  any  provocation  ;  that  the  war  which  had  broken  out 
among  various  nations  on  our  route,  exposed  us  to  another  evi- 
dent danger — that  of  being  killed  by  the  war-parties  which  are 
constantly  in  the  field  ;  that  the  Great  River  is  very  dangerous, 
unless  the  difficult  parts  are  known  ;  that  it  was  full  of  fright- 
ful monsters,  who  swallowed  up  men  and  canoes  together ; 
that  there  is  even  a  demon  there  who  can  be  heard  from  afar, 
who  stops  the  passage  and  engulfs  all  who  dare  approach ; 


«  V 


i6 


OLD   AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


lastly,  that  the  heat  is  so  excessive  in  those  countries  that  it 
would  infallibly  cause  our  death. 

"  I  thanked  them  for  their  kind  advice,  but  assured  them 
that  I  could  not  follow  it,  as  the  salvation  of  souls  was  con- 
cerned ;  that  for  them  I  should  be  too  happy  to  lay  down  my  life  ; 
that  I  made  light  of  their  pretended  demon ;  that  we  would 
defend  ourselves  well  enough  against  *^he  river-monsters  ;  and, 
besides,  we  should  be  on  our  guard  to  avoid  the  other  dangers 
with  which  they  threatened  us." 

Space  will  not  permit  us  to  describe  the  journey  of  the 
adventurers  in  detail.  We  can  only  say  that  they  proceeded  to 
the  head  of  Green  Bay,  entered  Fox  River,  which  they 
ascended  to  the  portage,  crossed  over  to  the  Wisconsin,  and  on 
the  17th  day  of  June,  feeling  a  joy  that  could  not  be  expressed, 
entered  the  Mississippi.  From  the  Wisconsin  they  descended 
to  the  Arkansas,  whence  they  returned,  satisfied  that  the  Father 
of  Rivers  went  not  to  the  ocean  east  of  Florida,  nor  yet  to  the 
Gulf  of  California.  Arriving  at  the  mouth  of  the  Illinois,  they 
entered  that  river,  by  which  route  they  reached  Lake  Michigan 
at  Chicago,  and,  coasting  along  the  western  shore  of  that  lake, 
arrived  at  Green  Bay  before  the  end  of  September. 

Here  Joliet  took  his  leave  of  Marquette  and  returned  to 
Quebec,  while  Marquette  remained  at  the  mission  to  recruit 
his  failing  health  befoi'e  again  entering  upon  his  missionary 
labors.  On  his  return,  he  had  promised  a  tribe  of  the  Illinois 
Indians  that  he  would  soon  establish  a  mission  among  them, 
and  this  fact  he  doubtless  communicated  to  his  superiors  at 
Montreal  by  the  Ottawa  flotilla  of  the  following  year.  •  The 
return  of  the  fleet  of  canoes  brought  him  the  necessary  order, 
and  on  the  25th  oi  October,  1674,  he  set  out  to  establish  his 
long  projected  Illinois  mission.  His  former  malady — dysen- 
tery— however,  returned,  and  he  was  compelled,  with  his  two 
companions,  to  winter  on  the  ClMicago  River.  In  the  spring 
of  1675  he  was  able  to  complete  his  journey  and  begin  his 
mission,  but  a  renewed  and  more  vigorous  attack  of  disease 
soon  satisfied  him  that  his  labors  on  earth  were  nearly  done. 


„iiU 


JESUIT     HISTORY. 


17 


tries  that  it 

■ssurccl  them 
lis  was  con- 
>wn  my  life ; 
t  we  would 
listers;  and, 
ther  dangers 

Lirney  of  the 
proceeded  to 
which  they 
)nsin,  and  on 
be  expressed, 
sy  descended 
lat  the  Father 
or  yet  to  the 
Illinois,  they 
ike  Michigan 
of  that  lake, 
r. 

returned  to 
)n  to  recruit 
missionary 
f  the  Illinois 
among  them, 

superiors  at 

year.  •  The 

essary  order, 

establish  his 
lady — dysen- 
vith  his  two 
In  the  spring 
nd  begin  his 
:k  of  disease 

nearly  done. 


He  could  not  die,  however,  without  again  visiting  his  beloved 
mission  at  Mackinac  and  bowing  in  the  chapel  of  St.  Ignatius  ; 
he  therefore  set  out,  hoping  that  his  failing  strength  would  per- 
mit him  to  accomplish  the  journey.  As  he  coasted  along  the 
eastern  shore  of  Lake  Michigan,  his  strength  gradually  failed, 
and  he  was  at  last  so  weak  that  he  could  no  longer  help  him- 
self, but  had  to  be  lifted  in  and  out  of  his  canoe  when  they 
landed  each  night.  At  last,  perceiving  the  mouth  of  a  river, 
he  pointed  to  an  eminence  near  by,  and  told  his  companions 
that  it  was  the  place  of  his  last  repose.  They  wished,  how- 
ever, to  pass  on,  as  the  weather  was  fine  and  the  day  not  far 
advanced,  but  a  wind  soon  arose  which  compelled  them  to 
return  and  enter  the  river  pointed  out  by  the  dying  missionary. 
They  carried  him  ashore,  erected  a  little  bark  cabin,  kindled  a 
fire,  and  made  him  as  comfortable  as  they  could.  Having 
heard  the  confessions  o''  his  companions,  f.nd  encouraged  them 
to  rely  with  confidence  on  the  protection  of  God,  Marquette 
now  sent  them  away,  to  take  the  repose  they  so  much  needed. 

Two  or  three  hours  afterward  he  felt  his  end  approachii.g, 
and  summoned  his  companions  to  his  side.  Taking  his  crucifix 
from  around  his  neck,  and  placing  it  in  their  hands,  he  pro- 
nounced in  a  firm  voice,  his  profession  of  faith,  and  thanked 
the  Almighty  for  the  favor  of  permitting  him  to  die  a  Jesuit,  a 
missionary,  and  alone.  Then,  his  face  all  radiant  with  joy, 
and  his  eyes  raised,  as  if  in  ecstasy,  above  his  crucifix,  with  the 
words  "Jesus  "  and  "  Mary  "  upon  his  lips,  he  passed  from  the 
scene  of  his  labors  to  his  rest  in  heaven.  After  the  first  out- 
bursts of  grief  were  over,  his  companions  arranged  his  body 
for  burial,  and,  to  the  sound  of  his  little  chapel  bell,  bore  it 
slowly  to  the  spot  which  he  himself  had  designated,  where 
they  committf-;!  it  to  the  earth,  raising  a  large  cross  to  mark  his 
last  resting  placcf.  This  occurred  on  the  i8th  day  of  May, 
1675,  in  the  thirty-eighth  year  of  his  .i.ge. 

Two  years  later,  and  almost  on  the  anniversary  of  this 
event,  a  party  of  Indians  whom  Marquette  had  himself  in- 
structed at  Lapointc,  visited  his  grave,  on  their  return  from 


iKrtx 


iT" 


i8 


OLD   AND    NE\V   MACKINAC. 


i    I 


• 


1^  ^H 


ll  ' 


their  winter  hunting  grouiuls,  and  resolved  to  disinter  their 
good  Father  and  bear  his  revered  bones  to  the  mission  of  St. 
Ignatius,  at  Mackinac,  where  they  resided.  They  therefore 
opened  the  grave,  and,  according  to  custom,  dissected  the  body, 
.washing  the  bones  and  drying  them  in  the  sun.  When  tliis 
was  done,  &  neat  box  of  birch  bark  was  prejDarcd,  into  which 
the  l)ones  were  placed,  and  the  flotilla,  now  become  a  funeral 
convoy,  proceeded  on  its  way.  Only  the  dip  of  the  paddles 
and  the  sighs  of  the  Indians  broke  the  silence,  as  the  funeral 
cortege  advanced.  When  nearing  Mackinac,  the  missionaries, 
accompanied  by  many  of  the  Indians  of  the  place,  went  to 
meet  them,  and  there,  upon  the  waters,  rose  the  "  De  Profun- 
dis,"  which  continued  till  the  coffined  remains  of  the  good 
Father  reached  the  land.  With  the  usual  ceremonies  his 
bones  were  then  borne  to  the  church,  where,  beneath  a  pall 
stretched  as  if  over  a  coffin,  they  remained  during  the  day, 
when  they  were  deposited  in  a  little  vault  in  the  middle  of  the 
church,  "  where,"  says  the  chronicler,  "  he  still  reposes  as  the 
guardian  angel  of  our  Ottawa  mission."  Thus  did  Marquette 
accomplisli,  in  death,  the  voyage  which  life  had  not  enabled 
him  to  terminate. 

In  the  life  of  this  humble  and  unpretending  missionarj* 
and  explorer  there  is  much  to  admire.  Though  an  heir  to 
wealth  and  position  in  his  native  land,  he  voluntarily  sej^arated 
himself  from  his  friends,  and  chose  a  life  of  sacrifice,  toil,  and 
death,  that  he  might  ameliorate  the  moral  and  spiritual  con- 
dition of  nations  sunk  in  paganism  and  vice.  His  disposition 
was  cheerful  under  all  circumstances.  His  rare  qualities  of 
mind  and  heart  secured  for  him  the  esteem  of  all  who  knew 
him.  He  was  a  man  of  sound  sense  and  close  observation, 
not  disposed  to  exaggerate,  not  egotistical.  His  motives  were 
pure  and  his  eflbrts  earnest.  His  intellectual  abilities  must 
have  been  of  no  ordinary  type ;  his  letters  show  him  to  have 
been  a  man  of  education,  and  though  but  nine  years  a  mission- 
ary among  the  Indians,  he  spoke  six  languages  with  ease,  and 
understood  less  perfectly  many  others. 


\Mi 


JESUIT    HISTORY. 


t^ 


sinter  their 
ssion  of  St. 
;y  therefore 
ed  the  body, 

When  this 
,  into  which 
le  a  funeral 
the  paddles 

the  funeral 
nissionaries, 
ice,  went  to 

De  Profun- 
of  the  good 
emonies  his 
neath  a  pall 
ng  the  day, 
niddle  of  the 
jposes  as  the 
d  Marquette 

not  enabled 

;  missionary 
an  heir  to 
y  separated 
ice,  toil,  and 
piritual  con- 
disposition 
qualities  of 
who  knew 
observation, 
lotivcs  were 
bilities  must 
im  to  have 
s  a  mission- 
th  ease,  and 


With  Marquette  religion  was  the  controling  idea.  The 
salvation  of  a  soul  was  more  than  the  conquest  of  an  empire. 
He  was  careful  to  avoid  all  appearance  of  a  worldly  or  national 
mission  among  the  savages.  On  many  a  hillside  and  in  many 
a  shadv  vale  did  he  set  up  the  cross,  but  nowhere  did  he  carve 
the  "  Lilies  of  the  Bourbons."  His  devotion  to  the  "  Blessed 
Virgin"  was  tender  and  all-absorbing.  From  early  youth  tc 
his  latest  breath  she  was  the  constant  object  of  his  adoration  ; 
no  letter  ever  came  from  his  hand  which  did  not  contain  the 
words  "  Blessed  Virgin  Immaculate,"  and  it  was  with  her 
name  upon  his  lips  that  he  closed  his  eyes  in  death,  as  gently 
as  though  sinking  into  a  quiet  slumber. 

Marquette  was  a  Catholic,  yet  he  is  not  the  exclusive 
property  of  that  people  :  he  belongs  alike  to  all.  His  name  is 
written  in  the  hearts  of  the  good  of  every  class.  As  an  ex- 
plorer he  will  live  in  the  annals  of  the  American  people 
forever. 

"  He  died  young,  but  there  are  silvered  heads 
Whose  race  of  duty  is  less  nobly  run." 

The  history  of  the  mission  of  St.  Ignace  after  its  founder 
embarked  on  that  voyage  which  immortalized  his  name,  may 
i)e  told  in  few  words.     Marquette  was  succeeded  by  Father 
Pierson,  who,  in  1764,  found  it  necessary  to  erect  a  new  and 
more  commodious  church,  as  a  large  band  of  Ottawas  had 
settled  near.     In  the  spring  of  1677,  prior  to  the  transfer  of 
Marquette's  remains  to  the  mission,  Father  Nouvel  arrived  and 
took  charge  of  the  Ottawa  portion  of  the  mission,  leaving  the 
Hurons  to  Father  Pierson.     In  the  followinof  vear  the  mission 
was  again  consolidated,  and  Father  Enjalran  appointed  mission- 
ary.    This  Father  continued  at  the  mission  for  several  years, 
but  after  him  we  know  little  of  its  history.     In   1706,  the  mis- 
sionaries becoming  disheartened,  burned  down  their  college 
and  chapel,  and  returned  to  Quebec. 


I 


\-y\i 


!i  m 


20 


OLD  AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


^ 


CHAPTER  II. 


FRENCH   HISTOnV. 

Prior  to  1679  little  had  been  done  toward  exploring  and 
colonizing  the  great  Northwest,  save  by  the  humble  disciples 
of  Ignatius  Loyola,  but  at  that  date  commercial  enterprise  en- 
tered the  field,  and  the  missionary  spirit  took  a  subordinate 
place  in  the  onward  march  of  civilization. 

When  Joliet  returned  from  his  voyage  down  the  Missis- 
sippi, the  young,  energetic  and  adventurous  Robert  Cavalier  de 
la  Salle,  then  lord  of  Fort  Frontenac,  had  already  planned  an 
expedition  across  the  Great  Lakes  to  the  shores  of  the  Pacific, 
hoping  thereby  to  find  a  short  passage  to  China. 

The  news  of  the  brilliant  discoveries  made  by  Marquette 
and  Joliet  kindled  the  sanguinary  mind  of  this  young  enthu- 
siast, and  induced  him  to  redouble  his  exertions  to  carry  out 
his  design.  With  plans  for  the  colonization  of  the  Southwest, 
and  commerce  between  Europe  and  the  Mississippi,  La  Salle 
now  visited  M.  de  Frontenac,  Governor  General  of  Canada, 
and  laid  before  him  the  dim,  but  gigantic,  outlines  of  his  pro- 
ject. He  aimed  at  the  extension  of  French  power  by  the  con- 
struction of  a  chain  of  fortifications  at  the  most  prominent 
points  along  the  lakes  and  rivers  of  the  West.  Frontenac  en- 
tered warmly  into  La  Salle's  plans,  and  advised  him  to  apply 
directly  to  the  King  of  France.  This  he  accordingly  did,  and 
meeting  with  favor  at  the  French  Court,  he  obtained  a  com- 
mission for  perfecting  the  discovery  of  the  "  Great  River," 
dated  May  12th,  1678,  and  signed  by  Colbert,  and  also  the 
monopoly  of  the  traffic  in  buffalo  skins.  He  was,  however, 
forbidden  to  carry  on  trade  with  the  Ottawas  and  other  tribes 


ii.. '1x111 


FRENCH    HISTORY. 


n 


ploring  and 
Ae  disciples 
nterprise  en- 
subordinate 

the  Missis- 
t  Cavalier  de 
'  planned  an 
'  the  Pacific, 

y  Marquette 
oung  enthu- 
to  carry  out 
!  Southwest, 
ipi,  La  Salle 
of  Canada, 
of  his  pro- 
by  the  con- 
:  prominent 
i-ontenac  en- 
im  to  apply 
gly  did,  and 
ined  a  com- 
reat  River," 
ind  also  the 
as,  however, 
1  other  tribes 


of  the  lakes,  who  were  accustomed  to  carry  their  furs  to  Mon- 
treal. On  his  return  to  Qiiobec,  he  found  Father  Louis  Hen- 
nepin, a  friar  of  the  Franciscan  order,  "  daring,  vain  and 
determined,"  says  Lahnman,  "  ambitious  to  reap  the  glory  of 
discovery,  and  not  too  scrupulous  as  to  the  means,"  who  had 
been  appointed  by  his  superiors  as  acting  missionary  to  accom- 
pany the  expedition. 

Though  beset  by  difficulties  on  every  hand  which  would 
have  appeared  formidable  to  any  man  of  moderate  soul.  La 
Salle  now  pushed  forward  with  the  utmost  dispatch.  Late  in 
November  he  left  Fort  Frontenac,  navigated  Ontario  in  a  little 
vessel  of  ten  tons,  and,  having  pushed  as  near  to  the  Falls  as 
could  be  done  with  safety,  disembarked.  Here  the  provisions, 
anchors,  chains,  merchandise,  &c.,  must  be  carried  beyond  the 
cataract  to  the  calm  water  above,  a  distance  of  at  least  twelve 
miles.  Impeded  by  deep  snows,  gloomy  forests  and  rugged 
heights,  this  task  was  not  finished  until  the  22d  day  of  January. 

During  the  remainder  of  the  winter  and  the  early  part  of 
the  succeeding  summer,  a  vessel  of  sixty  tons  burden,  called 
the  Griffin,  was  constructed,  and  other  preparations  perfected, 
for  the  prosecution  of  the  enterprise.  On  the  7th  day  of 
August,  1679,  amid  the  firing  of  cannon  and  the  chanting  of 
the  Te  Deum,  the  sails  were  unfurled,  and  the  little  vessel  ven- 
tured out  upon  Lake  Erie.  In  all,  there  were  thirty-four  men 
on  board,  mostly  fur  traders  for  the  valley  of  the  Mississippi. 
Among  them  vvas  Hennepin,  the  journalist  of  the  expedition, 
and  two  other  monks  who  had  joined  them  at  the  mouth  of 
the  Cayuga,  where  the  Griffin  was  built. 

For  three  days  she  boldly  held  hev  course  over  these 
unknown  waters,  where  sail  had  never  been  seen  before,  and 
then  turned  to  the  northward  "  between  the  vejj[Jant  isles  of 
the  majestic  Detroit."  Here,  on  either  hand,  was  spread  out 
the  finest  scenery  that  had  ever  delighted  the  Frenchman's  eye. 
Verdant  prairies,  dotted  with  groves  and  bordered  with  lofty 
forests  of  walnut,  chestnut,  wild  plum,  and  oak,  festooned  with 
grape  vines,  stretched  away  as  far  as  the  eye  could  reach. 


n  inf! 


22 


Or.D    AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


Hennepin  wondered  that  nature,  withont  the  help  of  art,  could 
have  made  so  charming  a  prospect.  Herds  of  deer  and  llocixs 
of  swan  and  wild  turkeys  were  plentiful.  The  bears  and 
other  beasts  ami  birds  whose  names  were  unknown,  were, 
in  the  lanj^uage  of  the  missionary,  "  extraordinary  relishin<:f." 

This  was  twenty  years  before  the  settlement  of  Detroit. 
Passing  on  up  the  rircr,  they  entered  the  lake  which  they 
named  St.  Clair,  from  the  day  on  which  they  traversed  its 
shallow  waters,  and,  at  length,  Lake  Huron  lay  hi  re  them, 
like  a  vast  sea,  sparkling  in  the  siui.  Here  again  th.  chanted 
a  Te  Dcum,  as  a  thank-ofVering  to  the  Almighty  for  the  pros- 
perity that  had  attended  them. 

The  gentle  breezes  which  now  swelled  the  canvas  of  the 
GrifHn  seemed  to  whisper  of  a  quick  and  prosperous  voyage 
to  the  head  waters  of  the  Huron,  but  soon  the  wind  died  a\'  ay 
to  a  calm,  then  freshened  to  a  gale,  then  rose  to  a  furious  tem- 
pest. The  elements  were  at  war.  The  raging  lake  threatened 
in  her  wrath  to  swallow  the  little  vessel  and  all  her  crew. 
Even  the  stout  heart  of  La  Salle  was  made  to  quake  with  fear, 
and  he  called  upon  all  to  commend  themselves  to  Heaven. 
Save  the  godless  pilot,  who  was  loud  in  his  anathemas  against 
his  commander  "  for  having  brought  him,  after  the  honor  he 
had  won  on  the  ocean,  to  drown,  at  last,  ignominiously,  in 
fresh  water,"  all  clamored  to  the  saints.  With  the  same  breath 
La  Salle  and  the  missionary  declared  St.  Anthony  the  patron 
of  the  expedition,  and  a  score  of  others  promised  that  a  chaj^el 
should  be  built  in  his  honor  if  he  would  but  save  them  from 
their  jeopardy.  But  the  obedient  winds  \vei;c  tamed  by  a 
greater  than  St.  Anthony,  and  the  Grifhn  "  plunged  on  her  way 
through  foaming  surges  that  still  grew  calmer  as  she  advanced." 
Woody  Bois  Blanc  soon  lifts  the  top  of  her  pristine  forests  to 
the  view  of  the  anxious  mariners.  In  the  dim  distance  are  the 
Manitoulines.  Farther  on,  "  sitting  like  an  emerald  gem  in 
the  clear,  pellucid  wave,  is  the  rock-girt,  fairy  Isle"  of  Mack- 
inac. St.  Ignace,  the  scene  of  Marquette's  missionary  labors, 
and  the  site  of  that  chapel  beneath  which  repose  his  peaceful 


ililijli 


FRENCH    HISTORY. 


23 


^f  art,  could 
r  and  Hocks 
bears  and 
lowii,  were, 
•elishiiifj." 

I  of  Detroit, 
which  they 
traversed  its 
je'  re  them, 
:hi  chanted 
or  the  pros- 

invas  of  the 
nnis  voyage 
id  (Hed  a\  ay 
furious  te ni- 
ce threatened 

II  her  crew, 
ic  with  fear, 

to  Heaven. 
;mas  against 
le  honor  he 
liniously,   in 

same  breath 
I  the  patron 
that  a  chapel 
s  them  from 
tamed  by  a 
d  on  her  way 
e  advanced." 
ne  forests  to 
tancc  are  the 
raid  gem  in 
e  "  of  Mack- 
)nary  labors, 

his  peaceful 


ashes,  is  before  them,  and  Peciuodeuong,  where  as  yet  the 
smoke  of  the  calumet  of  peace  has  always  ascended  and  the 
shrill  war-whoop  has  never  been  heard,  rises  gradually  and 
majestically  from  the  crystal  waters  which  cover  but  cannot 
conceal  the  pebbly  depths  beneath.  It  was  a  grand  and  im- 
posing scene  that  lay  spread  out  before  them. 

The  following  is  from  Hennepin :  "  The  27th,  in  the 
morning,  we  continued  our  course  northwest,  with  a  southeast 
wind,  which  carried  us  the  same  day  to  Alichilimackinac, 
where  we  anchored  in  a  bay  at  six  fathom  water,  upon  a  shiny 
white  ''ottom.  That  bay  is  sheltered  by  the  coast  and  a  bank 
lying  irom  the  southwest  to  the  north  ;  but  it  lies  exposed  to 
the  south  vv.nds,  which  are  very  violent  in  that  country. 

"  MicLilimackinac  is  a  neck  of  land  to  the  north  of  the 
mouth  of  the  strait  through  which  the  Lake  of  the  Illinois  dis- 
charges itself  into  the  Lake  Huron.     That  canal  is  about  three 

leagues  long  and  one  broad. 

m  *  «  «  *  *  * 

"  We  lay  between  two  different  nations  of  savages  ;  those 
who  inhabit  the  Point  of  Michilimackinac  are  called  Ilurons, 
and  the  others,  who  are  about  three  or  four  leagues  more  north- 
ward, are  Ottawus.  Those  savages  were  equally  surprised  to 
see  a  ship  in  thei;  country  ;  and  the  noise  of  our  cannon,  of 
which  we  made  a  general  discharge,  fdled  them  with  great 
astonishment.  We  went  to  see  the  Ottawas,  and  celebrated 
mass  in  their  habitation.  M.  La  Salle  was  finely  dressed, 
having  a  scarlet  cloak  with  a  broad  gold  lace,  and  most  of  his 
men,  with  their  arms,  attended  him.  The  chief  captains  of 
that  people  received  us  with  great  civilities  after  their  own 
way,  and  some  of  them  came  on  board  with  us,  to  see  our 
ship,  which  rode  all  that  while  in  the  bay  or  creek  I  have 
spoken  of.  It  was  a  diverting  prospect  to  see  every  day  above 
six  score  canoes  about  it,  and  the  savages  staring  and  admiring 
that  fine  wooden  conoe,  as  they  called  it.  They  brought  us 
abundance  of  whitings,  and  some  trouts  of  fifty  or  sixty  pound 
weight. 


V' 


24 


OLD    AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


"  We  went  the  next  day  to  pay  a  visit  to  the  Hurons,  who 
inhabit  a  rising  ground  on  a  neck  of  land  over  against  Michili- 
mackinac.  Their  villages  are  fortified  with  palisades  of 
twenty-five  feet  high,  and  always  situated  upon  eminences  or 
hills.  They  received  us  with  more  respect  than  the  Ottawas, 
for  they  made  a  triple  discharge  of  all  the  small  guns  they  had, 
having  learned  from  some  Europeans  that  it  is  the  greatest 
civility  among  us.  However,  they  took  such  a  jealousy  to  our 
ship  that,  as  we  vmderstood  since,  they  endeavored  to  make  our 
expedition  odious  to  all  the  nations  about  them. 

"  The  Hurons  and  Ottawas  are  in  confederacy  together 
against  the  Iroquois,  their  common  enemy.  They  sow  Indian 
corn,  which  is  their  ordinary  food  ;  for  they  have  nothing  else  to 
live  upon,  except  some  fish  they  take  in  the  lakes.  They  boil 
it  with  their  sagamittee,  which  is  a  kind  of  broth  made  with 
water  and  the  flour  of  the  corn,  which  they  beat  in  a  mortar, 
made  of  the  trunk  of  a  tree,  which  they  make  hollow  with 
fire." 

La  Salle  remained  at  Mackinac  until  the  second  day  of 
September,  when  he  set  sail  for  Green  Bay.  At  this  point, 
contrary  to  orders,  he  collected  a  cargo  of  furs,  with  which  he 
dispatched  the  Grifiin  to  Niagara,  while  he  himself,  with  a  part 
of  his  men,  repaired  in  bark  canoes  to  the  head  of  Lake  Mich- 
igan. Here  he  anxiously  awaited  the  return  of  his  little  vessel, 
but  alas  !  he  waited  in  vain.  No  tidings  ever  reached  him  of 
the  ill-fated  bark,  and  to  this  day  none  can  tell  whether  she  was 
swallowed  in  the  depths  of  the  lake,  destroyed  by  Indians,  or 
made  the  prize  of  traitors. 

The  loss  of  the  Griffin  was  a  very  severe  stroke  upon  La 
Salle,  yet  he  was  not  discouraged.  With  inflexible  energy,  he 
pursued  his  course.  From  Lake  Michigan  he  proceeded  into 
the  country  of  the  Illinois,  where  he  wintered.  Early  in  the 
following  spring  he  dispatched  Hennepin  to  discover  the  sources 
of  the  Mississippi,  while  he  himself  retui"ned  to  Canada  for  new 
supplies,  made  necessary  by  the  loss  of  the  Griffin.  In  1681 
he  returned,  and  in  1682,  having  constructed  a  vessel  of  a  sizo 


.!    ( 


FRENCH    HISTORY. 


25 


le  Hurons,  who 
against  Michili- 
1  palisades  of 
1  eminences  or 
n  the  Ottawas, 
guns  they  had, 
is  the  greatest 
jealousy  to  our 
'ed  to  make  our 

deracy  together 
hey  sow  Indian 
!  nothing  else  to 
CCS.  They  boil 
roth  made  with 
it  in  a  mortar, 
:e  hollow  with 

second  day  of 
At  this  point, 
with  which  he 
iclf,  with  a  part 
of  Lake  Mich- 
bis  little  vessel, 
reached  him  of 
hether  she  was 
by  Indians,  or 

troke  upon  La 
ble  energy,  he 
proceeded  into 
Early  in  the 
vcr  the  sources 
anada  for  new 
iffin.  In  1681 
vessel  of  a  sizr* 


suitable  for  the  purpose,  he  descended  the  Mississippi  to  the 
Gulf. 

Having  completed  the  exploration  of  the  Great  River,  his 
next  step  was  to  plant  colonies  along  its  banks,  for  which  pur- 
pose he  laboi-ed,  but  with  only  partial  siccess,  until  1687,  when 
he  was  assassinated  by  one  of  his  owi  men. 

Some  modern  writers  have  stated  that  the  first  fort  at 
Mackinac,  which  at  that  time  meant  little  more  than  a  trading 
house  surrounded  by  a  stockade,  was  built  by  La  Salle  in  1679, 
but  the  fact  that  Hennepin  makes  no  mention  of  this,  and  that 
La  Salle  was  prohibited  from  trading  with  the  Indians  of  this 
region,  would  seem  to  be  sufficient  proof  to  the  contrary.  Be- 
sides, if  we  may  take  the  testimony  of  Holmes'  American 
Annals,  this  fort  or  trading  post  was  first  established  in   1673. 

Of  the  oarly  histoi^  of  this  post,  subsequent  to  the  date  of 
La  Salle's  visit,  we  have  only  such  information  as  may  be 
gathered  fiom  the  notices  of  travelers  and  others  whose 
writings  have  come  down  to  us. 

In  i6S3  tlie  Baron  La  Houtan,  an  ofl^cer  of  rare  accom- 
plishmentb,  visited  this  post,  and  from  him  we  have  the  fol- 
lowing : 

'  At  last,  finding  that  my  provisions  were  almost  out,  I 
resolved  to  go  to  Michilimackinac,  to  buy  up  corn  from  the 
Hui'ons   and   Ottawas,       *****  ♦         ♦ 

*  *  *  *  I  arrived  at  this  place  on  the  iSth  of 
April,  and  my  uneasiness  and  trouble  took  date  from  the  day 
of  my  arrival :  for  I  found  the  Indian  corn  so  scarce  by  reason 
of  the  preceding  bad  harvests,  that  I  despaired  of  finding  half 
so  much  as  I  wanted.  But,  after  all,  I  am  hopeful  that  two 
villages  will  furnish  me  witii  almost  as  much  as  I  have  occasion 
for.  Mr.  Cavalier  arrived  here,  May  6th,  being  accompanied 
with  his  nephew,  Father  Anastase  the  Recollect,  a  pilot,  one  of 
the  savages,  and  some  few  Frenchmen,  which  made  a  sort  of  a 
party-colored  retinue.  These  Frenclmien  were  some  of  those 
that  Mr.  de  la  Salle  had  conducted  upon  the  discovery  of  Mis- 
sissippi.    They  give  out  that  they  arc  sent  to  Canada,  in  order 


"p  M   1 1 — r~ 


I    I, 
1    : 


26 


Ol-n    AND    NEW    MACKINAC, 


ill: 


1      I     ■  (   M 


1 


i!  Si 


!      I 


to  go  to  France,  with  some  dispatches  from  Mr.  de  la  Salle  to 
the  King ;  but  we  suspect  that  he  is  dead,  because  he  does  not 
return  along  with  them.  I  shall  not  spend  time  in  taking  notice 
of  their  great  journey  overland ;  which,  by  the  account  they 
give,  cannot  be  less  than  eight  hundred  leagues. 

"  Michilimackinac,  the  place  I  am  now  in,  is  certainly  a 
place  of  great  importance.  It  lies  in  the  latitude  of  forty-five 
degrees  and  thirty  minutes.  It  is  not  above  half  a  league  dis- 
tant from  the  IlUnese  Lake,  an  account  of  which,  and,  indeed, 
of  all  the  other  lakes,  you  may  expect  elsewhere.  Here  tlie 
Hurons  and  Ottawas  have,  each  of  them,  a  village  ;  the  one 
being  severed  from  the  other  by  a  single  palisade  ;  but  the  Ot- 
tawas are  beginning  to  build  a  fort  upon  a  hill  that  stands  ten 
or  twelve  hundred  paces  oft'.  This  precaution  they  were 
prompted  to  by  the  murder  of  a  certait?  Huron,  called  Sanda- 
ouires,  who  was  assassinated  in  the  Saginaw  River  by  four 
young  Ottawas.  In  this  jlace  the  Jesuits  have  a  little  house  or 
college,  adjoining  to  a  fort  of  a  church,  and  inclosed  with  poles 
that  separate  it  from  the  village  of  the  Hurons.  These  good 
Fathers  lavish  away  all  their  divinity  and  patience,  to  no  pur- 
pose, in  converting  such  ignorant  infidels ;  for  all  the  length 
they  can  bring  them  10,  is,  that  oftentimes  they  will  desire  ])ap- 
tism  for  their  dying  cliiidren,  and  some  few  superannuated 
persons  consent  to  receive  the  sacrament  of  baptism  when  they 
find  tlicmselves  at  the  point  of  death.  The  Coureurs  dc  bois 
have  but  a  very  small  settlement  here  ;  thougli  at  tlie  same 
time  it  is  not  inconsiderable,  as  being  the  staple  of  all  tlic  goods 
that  they  truck  with  the  south  and  the  west  savages ;  for  they 
cannot  avoid  passing  this  way,  when  they  go  to  the  seats  of  the 
Illinese,  and  tlie  Oumamis,  or  to  the  Bay  des  Puans,  and  to  the 
River  of  Mississippi.  The  skins,  which  they  import  from 
these  dirtcrent  places,  must  lie  here  some  time  before  they  are 
transportcil  to  the  colony.  Michilimackinac  is  situated  very 
advantageously ;  for  the  Iroquese  dare  not  venture,  with  their 
sorry  canoes,  to  cross  the  strait  of  the  Illinese  Lake,  which  is 
two  leagues  over;  besides  that  the  Lake  of  the  Hurons  is  too 


J^  ilii 


FRENCH    HISTORY. 


37 


[r.  tie  la  Salle  to 
:ausc  he  does  not 
e  in  taking  notice 
the  account  they 
;s. 

in,  is  certainly  a 
itude  of  forty-five 
lalf  a  league  dis- 
lich,  and,  indeed, 
^'here.     Here  the 
village  ;  the  one 
ade  ;  but  the  Ot- 
ill  that  stands  ten 
ution    tliey   were 
on,  called  Sanda- 
iv   River  by  four 
e  a  little  house  or 
iclosed  with  poles 
ins.     These  good 
ience,  to  no  pur- 
)V  all   the  length 
y  will  desire  bap- 
\v  superannuated 
iptism  when  they 
Jonrcurs  dc  bois 
igh  at  the  same 
le  of  all  the  goods 
ravages ;  for  they 
to  the  seats  of  the 
Puans,  and  to  the 
hey   import  from 
e  before  they  are 
;  is  situated  very 
.'uture,  witli  their 
Lake,  which  is 
lie  llurons  is  too 


rough  for  such  slender  boats ;  and  as  they  cannot  come  to  it  by 
water,  so  they  cannot  approach  to  it  by  land,  by  reason  of  the 
marshes,  fens,  and  little  rivers,  which  it  would  be  very  difficult 
to  cross  ;  not  to  mention  that  the  strait  of  the  Illincse  Lake  lies 
still  in  their  way." 

We  are  also  indebted  to  La  Iloutan  for  a  map  f,howing 
the  location  of  the  Jesuit  establishment,  and  also  of  the  French 
and  Indian  villages  as  they  existed  in  16SS. 

In  1695  M.  de  la  Motte  Cadillac,  afterivards  the  founder 
of  Detroit,  commanded  at  this  post.  He  thus  describes  the 
place  at  the  time  : 

"  It  is  very  important  that  you  should  know,  in  case  you 
are  not  already  informed,  that  this  village  is  one  of  the  largest 
in  all  Canada.  There  is  a  fine  fort  of  pickets,  and  sixty  houses, 
that  form  a  street  in  a  straight  line.  There  is  a  garrison  of 
well  disciplined,  chosen  soldiers,  consisting  of  about  two  liun- 
dred  men,  the  best  formed  and  most  athletic  to  be  found 
in  this  New  World  ;  besides  many  other  persons  who  are  resi- 
dents here  during  two  or  three  months  in  the  year.  *  *  * 
The  houses  are  arranged  along  the  shore  of  this  great  Lake 
Huron,  and  fish  and  smoked  meat  constitute  the  principal  food 
of  the  inhabitants.- 

"  The  villages  of  the  savages,  in  which  there  are  six  or 
seven  thousand  souls,  are  about  a  pistol-shot  distant  from  ours. 
.^11  the  lands  are  cleared  for  about  three  leagues  around  their 
tillage,  and  perfectly  well  cultivated.  Tiiey  produce  a  sufii- 
cicnt  (juantity  of  Indian  corn  for  the  use  of  both  the  French 
and  savage  inhabitants." 

In  1699,  Cadillac,  perceiving  the  importance  of  a  fort  on 
tlie  Detroit,  repaired  to  Francj  to  present  the  subject  to  the 
consideration  of  Count  Pontchartrain,  the  colonial  minister. 
He  was  favorably  received,  and  authorized  to  establish  the  pro- 
posed fort  at  the  earliest  date  possible.  This  he  accomplished 
in  1 701. 

With  the  exception  of  here  and  there  a  Jes.:it  missionary 


28 


OLD    AND    NEW   MACKINAC. 


>ll 


and  a  few  half  savage  coureiirs  de  bois,  the  region  around 
Mackinaw  was  now  forsaken  by  the  French. 

A  dispute  soon  arose  between  Cadillac  and  the  Jesuits, 
the  former  insisting  upon  a  concentration  of  French  interests 
in  the  West,  at  Detroit,  the  lal^'er  urging  the  French  govern- 
iTient  to  reestablish  Mackinaw.  The  Jesuits  did  all  in  their 
^jower  to  prevent  the  Indians  removing  to  Detroit,  while  Cadil- 
lac held  out  every  inducement  to  prevail  upon  them  to  desert 
their  villages  and  settle  in  the  vicinity  of  the  new  fort,  and  so 
far  succeeded  that  in  1706,  as  we  have  seen,  the  Jesuits  became 
discouraged,  burned  down  their  college  and  chapel,  and 
returned  to  Qiiebec.  But,  alarmed  at  this  step,  the  governor 
soon  prevailed  upon  Father  James  Marest  to  return,  and 
shortly  after,  the  Ottawas,  who  were  becoming  dissatisfied  at 
Detroit,  began  to  move  back  to  Mackinac. 

Father  Marest  now  did  all  in  his  power  to  prevail  upon 
the  French  government  to  send  M.  Louvigny,  a  former  com- 
mander, with  a  few  soldiers,  to  reestablish  the  fort,  but  did  not 
succeed  until  1714?  when  the  long  wished  for  garrison  and 
commander  arrived,  giving  new  life  to  the  settlement. 

In  1 72 1,  Father  Charlevoix,  the  historian  of  New  France, 
visited  Mackinaw,  and  thus  speaks  of  it : 

"  I  arrived  the  twenty-eighth  (June)  at  this  post,  which  is 
much  declined  since  M.  de  la  Motte  Cadillac  drew  to  Detroit 
the  greatest  part  of  the  savages  who  were  settled  here,  and 
especially  the  Hurons.  Several  Ottawas  have  followed  them, 
others  have  dispersed  themselves  in  the  Isles  of  Castor ;  there 
is  only  here  a  middling  village,  where  there  is  still  a  great 
trade  for  peltry,  because  it  is  the  passage  or  the  rendezvous  of 
many  of  the  savage  nations.  The  fort  is  preserved,  and  the 
house  of  the  missionaries,  who  are  not  much  employed  at 
l^resent,  having  never  found  much  docility  among  the  Ottawas  ; 
but  the  Court  thinks  their  presence  necessary,  in  a  place  where 
one  must  often  treat  with  our  allies,  to  exercise  their  ministry 
among  the  French,  who  come  hither  in  great  numbers.  T  have 
been  assured,  that  since  the  settlement  of  Detroit,  and  the  dis- 


Nl 

rol 
trJ 
foi 
HI 


iu:4itukuLi 


mf\ 


FRENCH   HISTORY. 


29 


ion  around 

the  Jesuits, 
:h  interests 
ch  govern- 
ill  in  their 
'hile  Caclil- 
1  to  desert 
brt,  and  so 
lits  became 
lapel,  and 
e  governor 
eturn,  and 
satisfied  at 

evail  upon 
rmer  com- 
nit  did  not   * 
rison  and 

t. 

fv  France, 

,  which  is 
to  Detroit 
here,  and 
ved  them, 
or;  there 
1  a  great 
ezvous  of 
,  and  the 
Dloyed  at 
Ottawas ; 
ice  where 

ministrv 
T  have 

the  dis- 


persion of  the  savages  occasioned  thereby,  many  nations  of  the 
North  who  used  to  bring  their  peltries  hither,  have  taken  the 
route  of  Hudson's  Bay,  by  the  River  Bourbon,  and  go  there  to 
trade  with  the  English  :  but  M.  dc  la  Motte  could  by  no  means 
foresee  this  inconvenience,  since  we  were  then  in  possession  of 
Hudson's  Bay. 

"  The  situation  of  Michilimackinac  is  very  advantageous 
for  trade.  This  post  is  between  three  great  lakes  :  Lake  Mich- 
igan, which  is  three  hundred  leagues  in  compass,  without 
mentioning  the  great  Bay  that  comes  into  it ;  Lake  Huron, 
which  is  three  hundred  and  fifty  leagues  in  circumference,  and 
which  is  triangular ;  and  the  Upper  Lake,  which  is  five  hun- 
dred leagues." 

From  the  date  of  Charlevoix's  visit,  down  to  1760,  when 
it  passed  forever  out  of  the  hands  of  the  French,  the  records  of 
the  establishment  at  Mackinaw  are  very  meagre,  and  compar- 
atively devoid  of  interest.  At  the  last  mentioned  date,  we  find 
the  fort  on  the  south  side  of  the  Straits,  but  the  time  of  the 
removal  to  that  point  has  not  been  given  by  any  author  at  the 
writer's  command.  Hennepin,  La  Houtan  and  Cadillac, 
whom  we  have  already  quoted,  describe  it  ^s  on  the  north  side, 
while  Charlevoix  says  nothing  bearing  upon  the  question. 
Sheldon,  in  his  History  f  Early  Michigan,  suggests  that  the 
I'emoval  probal'y  .ook  place  in  1714,  when  the  post  was 
reestablished. 

A  brief  notice  of  the  war  which  ended  with  a  transfer  of 
Qiiebec  with  all  its  dependencies,  not  the  least  among  which 
was  Mackinac,  will  close  the  chapter. 

France  and  England  being  rivals  in  the  Old  World,  could 
not  be  partners  of  the  New.  Had  these  two  powers  been  sat- 
isfied to  divide  the  American  continent  amicably  between  them, 
the  history  of  Columbia  would  have  been  far  difierent  from 
what  it  is  now.  But  when  they  crossed  the  Atlantic,  they 
brought  with  them  their  hereditary  enmity,  and  this  enmity 
was  strengthened  by  new  issues  which  were  constantly  arising. 


V 


30 


OLD    AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


Each  desired  undivided  dominion  over  the  North  and  West, 
and  at  times  the  struggle  for  supremacy  was  desperate. 

The  Indians  around  the  hd-ces  were,  almost  without  excep- 
tion, friendly  to  the  French,  while  the  "  Five  Nations,"  dwell- 
ing south  and  east  from  Lake  Ontario,  sided  with  the  English. 

As  early  as  i6S6,  English  adventurers,  in  quest  of  the  rich 
furs  of  the  Northwest,  pushed  up  the  lakes  to  Mackinac,  but 
the  French,  imwilling  that  any  portion  of  the  Indian  trade 
should  pass  into  the  hands  of  their  enem-cs,  made  their  visits 
to  this  region  too  hazardous  to  be  oft  repeated. 

The  heart  sickens  in  contemplating  this  portion  of  our 
country's  history.  Many  a  spot  was  stained  with  the  blood  of 
its  unfortunate  inhabitants.  The  forests  were  often  lighted  up 
with  the  conflagration  of  burning  villages,  and  the  stillness  of 
the  midnight  hour  was  frequently  broken  by  the  shrill  war- 
whoop,  mingled  with  the  shrieks  ci'  helpless  women  under  the 
tomahawk  or  scalping-knifc.  And  these  tragic  scenes  were  too 
often  prompted  by  French  or  English  thirst  for  power. 

But  ihially,  after  many  years,  during  which,  with  onh- 
short  intervals  of  peace,  these  scenes  of  blood  had  frequent 
repetitions,  the  British  government  determined  to  make  a 
powerful  eflbrt  to  dispossess  the  French  colonics  of  this  terri- 
tory. Military  operations,  however,  were  at  first  unfav  Mable 
to  the  English  cause.  Many  a  red  column  of  well  trained  and 
well  armed  regulars  wavered  before  the  rifles  of  the  combined 
French  and  Indians,  who  fought  concealed  in  thickets,  or  from 
behind  a  breastwork  of  fallen  trees.  But  in  1759,  victory 
turned  on  the  side  of  the  English,  and  the  question  was 
brought  to  a  speedy  and  decisive  issue.  An  English  army, 
under  the  command  of  l^rigadier-General  Wolf,  succeeded, 
during  the  night  of  September  •2th,  in  gaining  the  Heights  of 
Abraham,  at  Qiiebcc,  where,  upon  the  following  day,  was 
gained  one  of  the  most  momentous  victories  in  the  annals  of 
history,  a  victory  which  gave  to  the  English  tongue  and  the 
institutions  of  a  Protestant  Christianity  the  unexplored  and 
seemingly  infinite  North  and  West. 


FRKXCH   IHSTORV, 


rth  and  West, 
pcratc. 

without  cxccp- 
iitions,"  dwcll- 
h  the  English, 
est  of  tile  ricii 
Macldnac,  but 
Indian  trade 
de  their  visits 


Tliough  tliis  victory  was  gained  in  vSeptember  of  17:^9,  it 
was  not  until  September  of  1760  that  a  final  surrender  of  Can- 
ada, with  all  die  French  posts  around  the  lakes,  was  made  to 
the  English,  and  not  till  vSeptember  of  1761  that  possession  was 
taken  of  Mackinac  by  English  .roops,  as  mentioned  by  Henrv 
in  the  following  chapter. 


. 

..,.|. 


)ortion  of  our 

the  blood  of 
Jn  lighted  up 
lie  stillness  of 
c  shrill  war- 
len  under  the 
enes  were  too 
)wer. 

h,   with   only 
had  frequent 

to    make   a 
of  this  terri- 

unf:iv)rable 
1  trained  and 
ic  combined 
:ets,  or  from 
7S9,  victory 
uestion  was 
iglish   army, 

succeeded, 
:  Heights  of 
\g  day,  was 
e  annals  of 
fue  and  the 
plored  and 


;    f 


I    I 


I    •: 


i 


32 


OLD   AND   NEW  MACKINAC. 


CHAPTER  III. 


CONSPIRACY    OF    PONTIAC. 

With  the  change  of  jurisdiction  narrated  in  the  previous 
chapter,  a  new  scene  opens  before  us ;  a  scene  in  which  the 
red  men  arc  the  principal  actoi's.  The  victory  on  the  Heights 
of  Abraham,  at  Qiicbec,  gave  to  England  the  possession  of  a 
wide  extenc  of  territory,  but  that  territory  was  one  massive 
forest,  inteiTupted  only  by  prairies  or  lakes,  or  an  occasional 
Indian  cleared  field,  of  small  dimenh'ons,  for  maize.  The  em- 
blems of  power  in  these  illimitable  wastes  were  the  occasional 
log  forts,  with  picketed  enclosures,  which,  from  time  to  time, 
had  been  constructed  by  the  French,  but  more  as  trading  posts 
than  as  military  strongholds. 

What  the  English  had  gained  by  force  of  arms  they  took 
possession  of  as  conquerors,  and,  in  their  eagerness  to  supplant 
the  French,  they  were  blind  to  danger.  Some  of  these  posts 
were  garrisoned  by  less  than  a  score  of  men,  and  often  left 
dependent  upon  the  Indians  for  supplies,  though  they  were  so 
widely  remote  from  each  other  that,  "  lost  in  the  boundless 
woods,  they  could  no  more  be  discovered  than  a  little  fleet  of 
canoes  scattered  over  the  whole  Atlantic,  too  minute  to  be  per- 
ceptible, and  safe  only  in  foir  weather."  But,  weak  as  were 
the  English,  their  presence  alarmed  the  red  man,  for  it  implied 
a  design  to  occupy  the  country  which,  for  ages,  had  been  his 
own,  and  the  transfer  of  the  territory  around  the  Great  Lakes 
from  the  French,  who  were  the  friends  of  the  Indians,  to  the 
English,  upon  whom  they  had  been  taught  to  look  with  dis- 
trust, could  not,  therefore,  be  regarded  with  favor  by  these 
tawny  sons  of  the  woods.     The  untutored  mind  of  the  savage 


^'^^m 


lie  previous 
which  the 
:he  Heights 
iession  of  a 
me  massive 
occasional 
.  The  em- 
2  occasional 
ne  to  time, 
ading  posts 

they  took 

to  supplant 

hese  posts 

often  left 

ay  were  so 

boundless 

tie  fleet  of 

to  be  per- 

ik  as  were 

it  implied 

been  his 

eat  Lakes 

ms,  to  the 

with  dis- 

by  these 

the  savage 


)  * 


I 


CONSPIRACY   OF    PONTIAC. 


33 


could  not  comprehend  by  what  right  the  British  flag  was  un- 
furled in  the  West.  They  could  not  understand  liow  the  Eng- 
lish could  derive  any  claim  to  the  red  man's  forest  from  victories 
over  the  French.  Hence,  from  the  very  first,  the  English  were 
regarded  with  suspicion  by  the  Indian. 

It  would  have  been  well  had  the  conduct  of  the  English 
been  such  as  to  allay  these  suspicions,  but,  unfortunately,  it  was 
not.     The    Indians    and   French   had   lived   on   terms  of  the 
greatest  intimacy.     They  were  often  like  brothers  in  the  same 
lodge.     "  They  called  us  children,  and  we  found  them  fathers," 
said  a  Chippewa  chief,  and  these  feelings  pervaded  the  bosoms 
of  all  the  lake  tribes.     But  the  English  were  cold  and  repulsive 
toward  the  Indians.     The  French  had  made  them  liberal  pres- 
ents of  guns,  ammunition  and  clothing,  but  the  English  either 
withheld  these  presents  altogether,  or  dealt  them  out  so  spar- 
ingly   that  many   of  them,  deprived  of  their  usual  supplies, 
were    reduced   to  want,  and   thus  a   spirit  of  discontent  was  ^ 
fostered  among  them.     But  there  were  other  grievances.     The 
English  fur  traders  were,  as  a  class,   ruffians  of  the  coarsest 
stamp,  who  vied  with  each  other  in   violence  and  rafacity^ 
and  who  cheated  and  plundered  the  Indians  and  outraged  their 
families.     The  soldiers  and   officers  of  the  garrisons  had  no 
word  of  welcome  for  them  when  they  came  to  the  forts,  but 
only  cold  looks  and  harsh  words,  with  oaths,  menaces,  and  not 
unfrequently  blows  from  the  more  reckless  and  brutal  of  their 
number.     Another  fruitful  source  of  anxiety  and  discontent  on 
the  part  of  the  Indians,  was  the  intrusion  of  settlers  upon  their 
lands.     Their  homes  were   in  danger.     In  spite  of  every  re- 
monstrance, their  best  lands  had  already  been  invaded  ;  their 
hunting  grounds  would  soon  be  taken   from    them,    and   the 
graves  of  their   ancesters  be   desecrated  by  unhallowed  feet. 
Some  of  the  tribes  were  wrought  up  to  the  highest  pitch  of 
excitement    and   revenge   by   this   constant   invasion   of  their 
rights. 

Meanwhile,  it  must  not  be  supposed  that  the  French  were 
mere  idle  spectators  of  passing  events.     Canada  was  gone,  be- 

3 


34 


OLD   AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


||     u 


I : 


yond  the  hope  of  recovery,  but  tlie\'  still  sought  to  revenge  its 
loss  by  inflaming  the  resentment  of  the  Indians,  and  in  thi& 
they  spared  neither  misrepresentation  nor  falsehood.  They 
told  them  that  the  English  had  formed  the  deliberate  design  of 
rooting  out  their  race,  and  for  that  purpose  were  already  pen- 
ning them  in  with  settlements  on  the  one  hand  and  a  chain  of 
forts  on  the  other ;  that  the  King  of  France  had  of  late  years 
fallen  asleep  ;  that,  during  his  siiunbers,  the  English  had  seized 
upon  Canada,  but  that  he  was  now  awake,  and  his  armies  were 
even  then  advancing  up  the  St.  Lawrence  and  the  Mississippi, 
to  drive  the  intruders  fiom  the  country  of  his  red  children. 
These,  and  similar  fabrications,  made  a  deep  impression  upon 
the  minds  of  the  savages,  and  nerved  them  for  the  approaching 
contest.  Yet  another  cause  contributed  much  toward  increas- 
ing the  general  excitement  and  dissatisfaction,  and  bringing 
the  matter  to  an  issue.  A  prophet  came  among  the  Delawares, 
and  the  susceptibility  of  the  Indians  to  religious  and  super- 
"stitious  impressions  gave  him  a  mighty  influence  over  them. 
They  were  taught  to  lay  aside  everything  which  they  had  re- 
ceived from  the  white  man,  and  so  strengthen  and  purify  their 
natures  as  to  make  themselves  acceptable  to  the  Great  Spirit, 
and  by  so  doing  they  would  soon  be  restored  to  their  ancient 
greatness  and  power,  and  be  enabled  to  drive  the  enemy  from 
their  country.  The  prophet  had  many  followers.  From  far 
and  near  large  numbers  came  to  listen  to  his  exhortations,  and 
his  words,  pregnant  with  mischief  to  the  unsuspecting  Eng- 
lishman, were  borne  even  to  the  nations  around  the  northern 
lakes. 

This  excitement  among  the  savasje  tribes  soon  led  them  to 
overt  action.  In  the  spring  of  1761,  Capt.  Campbell,  then 
commanding  at  Detroit,  learned  that  a  deputation  of  Senecas 
had  come  to  the  neighboring  village  of  the  Wyandots  for  the 
purpose  of  instigating  the  latter  to  destroy  him  and  his  garri- 
son. Upon  examination,  the  plot  was  found  to  be  general,  and 
other  posts  were  to  share  the  fate  of  his  own  ;  but  his  prompt- 
ness in  sending  information  to  the  other  commanders  nipped 


ii   .     WV 


«p«««l 


CONSPIRACY    OF    PONTIAC. 


35 


revenge  it* 
and  in  this 
lood.  They 
ate  design  of 
ilready  pcn- 
l  a  chain  of 
)f  hite  years 
h  had  seized 
armies  were 
Mississippi, 
ed  children, 
es&ion  upon 
m^proachlng 
ard  increas- 
nd  bringing 
;  Delawares, 
and  super- 
over  them, 
hey  had  re- 
purify  their 
rrcat  Sjiirit, 
leir  ancient 
;nemy  from 
From  far 
tations,  and 
:cting  Eng- 
ic  northern 

ed  them  to 
abell,  then 
of  Senecas 
ots  for  the 
his  garri- 
cneral,  and 
lis  prompt- 
ers nipped 


the  conspiracy  in  the  bud.  During  the  following  year  a  similar 
design  was  detected  and  suppressed.  But  these  were  only  the 
precursors  of  a  tempest.  In  the  spring  of  1763  a  scheme  was 
matured,  "  greater  in  extent,  deeper  and  more  comprehensive  in 
design — such  a  one  as  was  never,  before  or  since,  conceived  or 
executed  by  a  North  American  Indian."  It  contemplated, — 
firsts  a  sudden  and  contemjDoraneous  assault  upon  all  the 
English  forts  around  the  lakes  ;  and  second^  the  garrisons  hav- 
ing been  destroyed,  the  turning  of  a  savage  avalanche  of 
destruction  upon  the  defenseless  frontier  settlements  until,  as 
many  fondly  believed,  the  English  should  be  driven  into  the 
sea  and  the  Indians  reinstated  in  their  primitive  possessions. 

But  before  we  further  describe  this  conspiracy,  let  us  turn 
our  attention  towards  Michilimackinac,  and  note  the  events  that 
were  transpiring  at  that  point.     It  is  unnecessary  to  say  that 
the  Indians  of  this  neighborhood  as  generally  and  as  sincerely 
lamented  the  change  which  had  taken  place  in  public  affairs  as 
their    iTiorc    southern    neighbors.     While   they   were  strongly 
attached  to  the  old  residents  with  whom  they  had  so  long  lived 
and  traded  on  the  most  amicable  terms,  they  were  very  gener- 
ally prejudiced  against  the  new  comers  ;  and  this  prejudice  was 
wholly  due  to  the  French,  for,  at  the  time  of  which  we  speak, 
the  English  had  not  taken  possession  of  the  post.     We  cannot 
better  describe  the  feelings  which  actuated  these  Indians  than 
by  relating  the  adventures  of  Alexander  Henry,  the  first  Eng- 
lish fur  trader  who  ventured   to  come   among  them.     It  was 
with  difficulty  that   Henry    obtained   permission   to   trade    at 
Michilimackinac,  at  the  time,  for,  no  treaty  of  peace  having 
been  made  with  the  Indians,  the  authorities  were  justly  appre 
hensive  that  neither  the  property  nor   lives  of  His  Majesty's 
subjects  would  be  very  secure  among  them.     But,  eager  to 
make  the  attempt  which  he  himself  afterward  called  prema- 
ture, he  at  length  obtained  the  coveted  license,  and,  on  the  3d 
day  of  August,  1761,  began  his  journey.     Nothing  worthy  of 
note  occurred  until   he   reached  the  Island  of  La  Cloche,  in 
Lake  Huron.     Here  the  trader  found  a  large  village  of  Indians, 


36 


OLD    AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


I 


in; 


Hi!' 


whose  behavior  was,  at  first,  full  of  civility  and  kindness,  but 
when  they  discovered  that  he  was  an  Englishman  there  was  at 
once  a  marked  change  in  the  treatment  which  he  received  at 
their  hands.  They  told  him  that  the  Indians  at  Michilimack- 
inac  would  not  fail  to  kill  him,  and  that  they  had  a  right, 
therefore,  to  a  share  of  the  pillage.  Upon  this  principle  they 
demanded  a  keg  of  rum,  ailding  that  if  it  was  not  given  to 
them  they  would  proceed  to  take  it.  Henry  judged  it  prudent 
to  comply,  but  on  condition  that  he  should  experience  no  fur- 
ther molestation  from  them.  From  this  point  lie  received 
repeated  warnings  of  sure  destruction  at  Michilimackinuc. 
Oppressed  with  a  sense  of  danger,  he  knew  not  what  to  do. 
It  was  well  nigh  impossible  to  return,  as  he  wi'.s  advised  to  do, 
for  his  provisions  -vA'cre  nearly  exhausted.  At  length,  observing 
that  the  hostility  oi  .'  ^  Indians  was  exclusively  towards  the 
English,  while  between  tnci..  ■'  his  Canadian  attendants 
there  appeared  the  most  cordial  good  will,  he  resolved  to 
change  his  English  dress  for  a  suit  such  as  was  usually  worn 
by  Canadian  traders.  This  done,  he  besmeared  his  face  and 
hands  with  dirt  and  grease,  aud,  taking  the  place  of  one  of  his 
men  whenever  Indians  approwched,  used  the  paddle,  with  as 
much  skill  as  possible.  !•!  .his  manner  he  was  enabled  to 
prosecute  his  journey  without  attracting  the  smallest  notice. 
Early  in  September  he  arrived  at  the  Island  of  Mackinac,  and 
here  we  propose  to  introduce  the  hardy  adventurer  to  the 
reader,  and  allow  him,  in  his  voyageur's  dress,  to  speak  for 
himself: 

"  The  land  in  the  centre  of  this  island,"  he  says,  "  is  high, 
and  its  form  somewhat  resembles  that  of  a  turtle's  back. 
Mackinac,  or  Mickinac,  signifies  a  turtle^  and  michi,  or  m/sst, 
signifies  greats  as  it  does  also  several^  or  many.  The  common 
interpretation  of  the  word  Michilimackinac  is,  the  Great 
Turtle.  It  is  from  this  island  that  the  fort,  commonly  known 
by  the  name  of  Michil'mackinac,  has  obtained  its  appellation. 

"  On  the  island,  as  I  had  previously  been  taught  to  expect, 
there  was  a  village  of  Chippewas,  said  to  contain  a  hundred 


I? 


IbiilllL.,, 


CONSPIRACY    OF    PONTIAC. 


37 


warriors.  Here  I  was  fearful  of  discovery,  and  consequent  ill 
treatment ;  hut  after  inquiring  the  news,  and  particuhu'ly 
whether  or  not  any  Englishman  was  coming  to  Michilimack- 
inac,  they  suflered  us  to  pass,  uninjured.  One  man,  indeed, 
looked  at  me,  laughed,  and  pointed  me  out  to  another.  This 
was  enough  to  give  me  some  uneasiness ;  but,  whatever  was 
the  singularity  he  perceived  in  me,  both  he  and  his  friend 
retired,  without  suspecting  nic  to  be  an  Englishman. 

"  Leaving,  as  speedily  as  possible,  the  island  of  Michill- 
mackinac,  I  crossed  the  strait,  and  landed  at  the  fort,  of  the 
same  name.  The  distance,  .  "  '  the  island,  is  about  two 
leagues.     I  landed  at  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon. 

"  Here  I  put  the  entire  charge  of  my  effects  into  the  hands 
of  my  assistant,  Campion,  between  whom  and  myself  it  had 
been  previously  agreed  that  he  should  pass  for  the  proprietor ; 
and  my  men  were  instructed  to  conceal  the  fact  that  I  was  an 
Englishman. 

"  Campion  soon  found  a  house,  to  which  I  retired,  and 
where  I  hoped  to  remain  in  privacy;  but  the  men  soon  be- 
trayed my  secret,  and  I  was  visited  by  the  inhabitants,  with 
gicatshow  of  civility.  They  assured  me  that  I  could  not  stay 
at  Michilimackinac  without  the  most  imminent  risk,  and 
strongly  recommended  that  I  should  lose  no  time  in  making 
my  escape  to  Detroit. 

"  Though  language  like  this  could  not  but  increase  my 
uneasiness,  it  did  not  shake  my  determination  to  remain  with 
my  property  and  encounter  the  evils  with  which  I  was  threat- 
ened, and  my  spirits  were  in  some  measure  sustained  by  the 
sentiments  of  Campion,  in  this  regard ;  for  he  declared  his 
belief  that  the  Canadian  inhabitants  of  the  fort  were  more 
hostile  than  the  Indians,  as  being  jealous  of  Indian  traders, 
who,  like  myself,  were  penetrating  into  the  country. 

"Fort  Michilimackinac  was  built  by  order  of  the  gov- 
ernor-general of  Canada,  and  garrisoned  with  a  small  number 
of  militia,  who,  having  families,  soon  became  less  soldiers  than 


ii 


Urtiitiiiiii   i 


iiiii 


Dili 


38 


OLD   AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


settlers.     Most  of  those  whom  I  found  in  the  fort  had  originally 
served  in  the  Fi-ench  army. 

"  The  fort  stands  on  the  south  side  of  the  strait  which  is 
between  Lake  Huron  and  Lake  Michigan.  It  has  an  area  of 
two  acres,  and  is  enclosed  with  pickets  of  cedar  wood,  and  it 
is  so  near  the  water's  edge  that,  when  the  wind  is  in  the  west, 
the  waves  break  against  the  stockade.  On  the  bastions  are 
two  small  pieces  of  brass  English  cannon,  taken  some  years 
since  by  a  party  of  Canadians  who  went  on  a  plundering  expe- 
dition against  the  posts  of  Hudson's  Bay,  which  they  reacher' 
by  the  route  of  the  river  Churchill. 

"  Within  the  stockade  are  thirty  ho-jses,  neat  ii.  their 
appearance,  and  tolerably  commodious ;  and  a  church,  in 
which  mass  is  celebrated  by  a  Jesuit  missionary.  The  num- 
ber of  families  may  be  nearly  equal  to  that  of  the  houses,  and 
their  subsistence  is  derived  from  the  Indian  traders,  who  as- 
semble here,  in  their  voyages  to  and  from  Alontreal.  Michili- 
mackinac  is  the  place  of  deposit,  and  point  of  departure 
between  the  upper  countries  and  the  lower.  Here  the  outfits 
nre  prepared  for  the  countries  of  Lake  Michigan  and  the  Mis- 
sissippi, Lake  Superior  and  the  Northwest ;  and  here  the 
returns,  in  furs,  are  collected  and  embarked  for  Montreal. 

"  I  was  not  released  from  the  visits  and  admonitions  of  the 
inhabitants  of  the  fort,  before  I  received  the  equivocal  intelli- 
gence that  the  whole  band  of  Chippewas,  from  the  island  of 
Michilimackinac,  was  arrived,  with  the  mtention  of  paying  me 
a  visit. 

"  There  was,  in  the  fort,  one  Farley,  an  interpreter,  lately 
in  the  employ  of  the  French  commandant.  He  had  married  a 
Chippewa  woman,  and  was  said  to  possess  great  influence  ovei 
the  nation  to  which  his  wife  belonged.  Doubtful  as  totlic  kind 
of  visit  which  I  was  about  to  receive,  I  sent  for  this  interpre- 
ter, and  requested,  first,  that  he  would  have  the  kindness  to  be 
pr^'sent  at  the  interview,  and,  secondly,  that  he  would  inform 
me  of  the  intentions  of  the  band.  Mr.  Farley  agreed  to  be 
presen': ;  and,  as  to  the  object  of  the  visit,  replied,  that  it  was 


iliii^ 


Hfft*^   ttWTv^LY  »w»ae,**,'»vwiw*v  j" »■»«»■*•«■•  ■ 


T 


"WW 


CONSPIRACY    OF    PONTIAC. 


39 


originally 

:  which  is 
n  area  of 
od,  and  it 
the  west, 
stions  are 
me  years 
ing  expe- 
'  reachef' 

ii.  their 
lurch,  in 
lie  num- 
Liscs,  and 

who  as- 

Michili- 
leparture 
le  outfits 
the  Mis- 
lere  the 
jal. 

s  of  the 

intelh'- 

iland  of 

fn\g  me 

r,  hitely 
irricd  a 
cc  ovei 
10  kind 
tcrpre- 
s  to  be 
inform 
to  be 
it  was 


consistent  with  a  uniform  custom,  that  a  stranger,  on  his 
arrival,  should  be  waited  upon,  and  welcomed,  by  the  chiefs  of 
the  nation,  who,  on  their  part,  always  gave  a  small  present, 
and  always  expected  a  large  one ;  but,  as  to  the  rest,  declared 
himself  unable  to  answer  for  the  particular  views  of  the  Chip- 
pewas,  on  this  occasion,  I  being  an  Englishman,  and  the  In- 
dians having  made  no  treaty  with  the  English.  He  thought 
that  there  might  be  danger,  the  Indians  having  protested  that 
they  would  not  suffer  an  Englishman  to  remain  in  their  part  of 
the  count,  y.  This  information  was  far  from  agreeable  ;  but 
there  was  no  resource,  except  in  fortitude  and  p.itience. 

"  At  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  the  Chippewas  came  to 
my  house,  about  sixty  in  number,  and  headed  by  Mina'va'va'- 
na,  their  chief  They  walked  in  single  file,  each  with  his 
tomahawk  in  one  hand,  and  scalping-knife  in  the  other.  Their 
bodies  were  naked,  from  the  waist  upward,  except  in  a  few 
examples,  where  blfnkets  were  thrown  loosely  over  the  shoul- 
ders. Their  faces  were  painted,  with  charcoal  worked  up  with 
greaac  ;  their  bodies,  with  white  clay,  in  patterns  of  various 
fancies.  Some  had  featbci-s  thrust  iuiough  their  noses,  and 
their  heads  decorated  with  the  same.  It  is  unnecessary  to 
dwell  on  the  sensations  with  which  I  b<;held  the  approach  o^ 
this  uncouth,  if  .lot  frightful,  assemblage. 

"  The  chief  entered  first,  and  the  rest  followed,  without 
noise.  On  receiving  a  sign  from  the  former,  the  latter  seated 
themselves  on  the  floor. 

"  Minavavana  appeared  to  be  about  fifty  years  of  age.  He 
was  six  feet  in  height,  and  had  in  his  countenance  an  inde- 
scribable mixture  of  good  and  evil.  Looking  steadfastly  at 
me,  where  I  sat  in  ceremony,  witli  an  interpreter  on  either 
hand,  and  several  Canadians  behind  me,  he  entered,  at  the 
same  time,  into  conversation  with  Campion,  inquiring  how 
long  it  was  since  I  left  Montreal,  and  observing  thai  the  Eng- 
lish, as  it  would  seem,  were  brave  men,  and  not  afraid  of 
death,  since  they  dared  to  come,  as  I  had  done,  fearlessly, 
among  their  enemies. 


40 


OLD   AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


"  The  Indians  now  gravely  smoked  their  pipes,  while  I 
inwardly  endured  the  tortures  of  suspense.  At  length,  the 
pipes  being  finished,  as  well  as  a  long  pause  by  which  they 
were  succeeded,  Minavavana,  taking  a  few  strings  of  wampum 
in  his  hand,  began  the  following  speech  ; 

"' Englishman,  it  is  to  you  that  I  speak,  and  I  dcmpncl 
your  attention ! 

"  '  Englishman,  you  know  that  the  French  kin  '•  ,ar 
father.  He  promised  to  be  such  ;  and  we,  in  rctum,  promised 
to  be  his  children.     This  promise  we  have  kept. 

"  '  Englishi  lan,  it  is  you  that  have  made  war  with  this  our 
father.  You  are  his  enemy ;  and  how,  then,  could  you  have 
the  boldness  to  venture  among  us,  his  children.''  You  know 
that  his  enemies  are  ours. 

"  '  Englishman,  we  are  informed  that  our  father,  the  king 
of  France,  is  old  and  infirm  ;  and  that,  being  fatigued  with 
making  war  upon  your  nation,  he  is  fallei*  asleep.  During  his 
sleep  you  have  taken  advantage  of  him,  and  possessed  your- 
selves of  Canada.  But  his  nap  is  almost  at  an  end.  1  think  I 
hear  him  already  stiiTing  and  inquiring  for  his  children,  th.:; 
Indians  ;  and,  Avhen  he  does  awake,  what  must  become  of  you  ? 
He  will  destroy  you  utterly  ! 

"  '  Englishman,  although  you  have  conquered  the  French, 
you  have  not  yet  conquered  us !  We  are  not  your  slaves. 
These  lakes,  these  woods  and  mountains,  were  left  to  us  by  our 
ancestors.  They  are  our  inheritance,  and  we  will  part  with 
them  to  none.  Your  nation  suppc^os  that  we,  like  tiie  white 
people  cannot  live  without  bread — and  pork — and  beef!  But, 
you  ought  to  know  that  He,  the  Great  Si:)irit  and  Master  of 
Life,  has  provided  food  for  us,  in  these  spacious  lakes,  and  on 
these  woody  imu'^^^ainri. 

"  '  Englishman,  our  father,  the  h\n^.:,  if  Fra-^ce.  employed 
our  young  men  to  make  war  upon  your  natior,  in  this  war- 
fare manv  of  them  have  been  killed  ;  and  it  is  our  custom  to 
retaliate  until  such  time  as  the  spirits  o^  th'.  slain  are  satisfied. 
But  the  spirits  of  the  slain  are  to  be  satii^'^ed  in  either  of  two 


% 


mmm 


CONSPIRACY    OF    PONTIAC. 


41 


3es,  while  I 

length,  the 

which  thev 

>f  wampum 

I  I  dcmr>ud 

kin^,  'r  ,:,ar 
1,  promised 

i^ith  this  our 
i  you  have 
You  know 

r,  the  king 
igiied  with 
During  his 
:ssed  you!- 
1  think  I 
ildren,  ths 
ne  of  you? 

le  French, 
ur  slaves, 
)  us  by  our 
part  with 
the  white 
^ef!  But, 
Master  of 
s,  and  on 

k'lnployed 

til  is  war- 

ustom  to 

satisfied. 

;r  of  two 


-•3 

I 


ways  ;  the  first  is  by  the  spilling  of  the  blood  of  the  nation  by 
which  they  fell ;  the  other,  by  covering  the  bodies  of  the 
dead,  and  thus  allaying  the  resentment  of  their  relations.  This 
is  done  by  making  presents. 

"  '  Englishman,  your  king  has  never  sent  us  a.iy  presents, 
nor  entered  into  any  treaty  with  us,  wherefore  he  and  we  are 
still  at  war ;  and,  until  he  does  these  things,  we  must  consider 
that  we  have  no  other  father  nor  friend,  among  the  white  men. 
than  the  king  of  France :  but,  for  you,  we  have  taken  into  con- 
sideration that  you  have  ventured  your  life  among  us  in  the 
expectation  that  we  should  not  molest  you.  You  do  not  come 
armed,  with  an  intention  to  make  war :  you  come  in  peace,  to 
trade  with  us,  and  supply  us  with  necessaries,  of  which  we  are 
much  in  want.  We  shall  regard  you,  therefore,  as  a  brother ; 
and  you  may  sleep  tranquilly,  without  fear  of  the  Chippcwas. 
As  a  token  of  our  friendship,  we  present  you  with  this  pipe,  to 
smoke.' 

"  As  Minavavana  uttered  these  words,  an  Indian  presented 

r  e  with  a  pipe,  which,  after  I  had  drawn  the  smoke  three 

♦^imes,  was  carried  to  the  chief,  and  after  him  to  every  person 

iti  the  room.     This  ceremony  ended,  the  chief  arose,  and  gave 

Me  his  hand,  in  which  he  was  followed  by  all  the  rest. 

"  Being  again  seated,  Minavavana  requested  that  his 
young  men  might  be  allowed  to  taste  what  he  called  my  Eng- 
lish milk  (meaning  rum)  observing,  that  it  was  long  since 
they  had  tasted  any,  and  that  they  were  very  desirous  to  know 
whether  or  not  there  were  any  difibrance  between  the  English 
milk  and  the  French. 

"  My  adventure  on  leaving  Fort  William  Augustus,  had 
left  ■in  impression  on  my  mind,  which  made  nic  tremble  when 
Indians  asked  for  rum  ;  and  I  would  therefore  willingly  have 
excused  myself  in  this  particular ;  but,  being  informed  that  it 
was  customary  to  comply  with  the  request,  and  withal  satisfied 
with  the  friendly  declarations  which  I  had  received,  I  promised 
to  give  them  a  small  cask  at  parting.  After  this,  by  the  aid  of 
my  interpreter,  I  made  a  reply  to  the   speech  of  Minavavana, 


M4 


Ml 


llil  I; 


42 


OLD    AND    NH:W    MACKINAC. 


declaring  that  it  was  the  good  character,  which  I  had  heard  of 
the  Indians,  that  had  alone  emboldened  me  to  come  among 
them :  that  their  late  father,  the  king  of  France,  had  surren- 
dered Canada  to  the  king  of  England,  whom  they  ought  to 
regard  now  as  their  father,  and  who  would  be  as  careful  of 
thv,  he  other  had  been  ;  that  I  had  come  to  furnish  them 

with  11'  essaries,  and  that  their  good  treatment  of  ,ne  would 
be  an  encouragement  to  others.  They  appeared  satisfied  with 
what  I  said,  repeating  e/i !  (an  expression  of  approbation) 
after  hearing  each  particular.  I  had  prepared  a  present,  which 
I  now  gave  them  with  the  u^^inost  good  will.  At  their  depar- 
ture I  distributed  a  small  quantit}'  of  rum. 

"  P  jlieved,  as  I  now  imagined  myself,  from  all  occasion 
of  anxiety,  as  to  the  treatment  which  I  was  to  experience  from 
the  Indians,  I  assorted  my  goods,  and  hired  Canadian  interpre- 
ters and  clerks,  in  whose  care  I  was  to  send  them  into  Lake 
Michigan,  and  the  river  Saint  Pierre,  in  the  country  of  the 
Nadowessies  ;  into  Lake  Superior,  among  the  Chippewas,  and 
to  the  Grand  Portage,  for  the  northwest.  Everything  was 
ready  for  their  departure  when  new  dangers  sprung  up  and 
threatened  to  overwhelm  me. 

"  At  the  entrance  of  Lake  Michigan,  and  at  about  twenty 
miles  to  the  west  of  Fort  Michilimackinac,  is  the  village  of 
L'Arbre  Croche,  inhabited  b}'  a  band  of  Ottawas,  boasting  of 
two  hundred  and  fifty  fighting  men.  L'Arbre  Croche  is  the 
seat  of  the  Jesuit  mission  of  Saint  Ignace  dc  Michilimackinac, 
and  the  people  are  partly  baptized  and  partly  not.  The  mis- 
sionary resides  on  a  farm,  attached  to  the  mission,  and  situated 
between  the  village  and  the  fort,  both  of  which  are  under  his 
care.  The  Ottawas  of  L'Arbrj  Croche.  who,  v/hcn  compared 
with  the  Chippewas,  appear  to  be  much  advanced  in  civiliza- 
tion, grow  maize  for  the  market  of  Michilimackinac,  where 
this  commodity  is  depended  upon  for  provisioning  the  canoes. 
•  *'  The  ne\7  dangers  which  presented  themselves  came  from 
this  village  of  Ottawas.  Everything,  as  I  have  said,  was  in 
readiness,   for   the   departure   of  my   goods,   when    accounts 


1   ! 


|i>>>^MMMuw. 


mm 


CONSPIRACY    OF    POXTIAC. 


43 


I  had  heard  of 
'  come  among 
e,  had   surren- 
they  ought  to 
■   as  careful  of 
'  furnish  them 
of  .ne  would 
satisfied  with 
'  approbation) 
present,  which 
t  their  depar- 

1  all  occasion 
perience  from 
dian  interpre- 
:ni  into  Lake 
ountry  of  the 
ippewas,  and 
rything  was 
ung  up   and 

ibout  twenty 
le  village  of 

boasting  of 
loche  is  the 
ilimackinac, 
The  mis- 
and  situated 
e  under  his 
n  compared 

in  civiliza- 
nac,  where 
the  canoes. 
5  came  from 
iiid,  was  in 
1    accounts 


I 


arrived  of  its  approach  ;  and  shortly  after,  two  hundred  war- 
riors entered  the  fort,  and  billeted  themselves  in  the  several 
houses,  among  the  Canadian  inhabitants.  The  next  morning, 
they  assembled  in  the  house  which  was  built  for  the  command- 
ant, or  governor,  and  ordered  the  attendance  of  myself,  and 
of  two  other  merchants,  still  later  from  Montreal,  namely 
Messrs.  Stanley  Goddard  and  Ezekiel  Solomons. 

"  After  our  entering  the  council-room,  and  taking  our 
seats,  one  of  the  chiefs  commenced  an  address  :  '  Englishmen,' 
said  he,  '  we,  the  Ottawas,  were  sometime  since  informed  of 
your  arrival  in  this  country,  and  of  your  having  brought  with 
you  the  goods  of  which  we  have  nSed.  At  the  news  we  were 
greatly  pleased,  believing  that  through  your  assistance  our  wives 
and  children  would  be  enabled  to  pass  another  winter ;  but 
what  was  our  surprise,  when,  a  few  days  ago,  we  were  again 
informed,  that  the  goods  which,  as  we  had  exjjected,  were  in- 
tended for  us,  were  on  the  eve  of  departure  for  distant  coun- 
tries, of  which,  some  are  inhabited  by  our  enemies!  These 
accounts  being  spread,  our  wives  and  children  came  to  us,  cry- 
ing, and  desiring  that  we  should  go  to  the  fort,  to  learn,  with 
our  own  ears,  their  truth  or  falsehood.  We  accordingly  cm- 
barked,  almost  naked,  as  you  see  ;  and  on  our  arrival  here,  we 
have  inquired  into  the  accounts,  and  found  them  true.  We  see 
your  canoes  ready  to  depart,  and  find  your  men  engaged  for 
the  Missijopippi  and  other  distant  regions. 

"  Under  these  ciixumstanccs,  we  have  considered  the 
afiair ;  and  you  are  now  sent  for,  that  you  may  hear  our  deter- 
mination, which  is  that  you  shall  give  to  each  of  oiu'  men 
young  and  old,  merchandize  and  ammunition,  to  the  amount 
of  fifty  beaver-skins,  on  credit,  and  for  which  I  have  no  doubt 
of  their  paying  you  in  the  summer,  on  their  return  from  their 
wintering. 

"  A  compliance  with  this  demand  would  have  stripped  me 
and  my  fellow-merchants  of  all  our  merchandize  ;  and  what  ren- 
dered the  afiair  still  more  serious,  we  even  learned  that  these 
Ottawas  were  never  accustomed  to  pay  for  what  they  received 


,,;!  ■       ill 


jii!!^^^ 


44 


OLD   AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


on  credit.  In  reply  therefore,  to  the  speech  which  we  had 
heard,  we  requested  that  the  demand  contained  in  it  might 
be  diminished ;  but  we  were  answered,  that  the  Ottawas  had 
nothing  further  to  say,  except  that  they  would  allow  till  the 
next  day  for  reflection ;  after  which,  if  compliance  was  not 
given,  they  would  make  no  further  application,  but  take  into 
their  own  hands  the  property,  which  they  already  regarded  as 
their  own  as  having  been  brought  into  their  country,  before  the 
conclusion  of  any  peace,  between  themselves  and  the  English. 

"We  now  returned,  to  consider  of  our  situation;  and  in 
the  evening,  Farley,  the  interpreter,  paid  us  a  visit,  assured  us 
that  it  was  the  intention  of  the  Ottawas  to  put  us,  that  night,  to 
death.  He  advised  us,  as  our  only  means  of  safety,  to  comply 
with  the  demands  which  had  been  made  ;  but  we  suspected  our 
informant  of  a  disposition  to  prey  upon  our  fears,  with  a  view 
to  induce  us  to  abandon  the  Indian  trade,  and  resolved,  how- 
ever this  might  be,  rather  to  stand  en  the  defensive,  than  sub- 
mit. We  trusted  to  the  house  in  which  I  lived  as  a  fort ;  and 
armed  ourselves,  and  about  thirty  of  our  men,  with  muskets. 
Whether  or  not  the  Ottawas  ever  intended  violence,  we  never 
had  an  opportunity  of  knowing ;  but  the  night  passed  quietly. 

"  Early  the  next  morning,  a  second  council  was  held,  and 
the  merchants  were  again  summoned  to  attend.  Believing  that 
every  hope  of  resistance  v/ould  be  lost,  should  we  commit  our 
l^erson  into  the  hands  of  our  enemies,  we  sent  only  a  refusal. 
There  was  none  without,  in  whom  we  had  any  confidence,  ex- 
cept Campion.  From  him  we  learned  from  time  to  time, 
whatever  was  rumored  among  the  Canadian  inhabitants,  as  to 
the  designs  of  the  Ottawas  ;  and  from  him  toward  sunset,  we 
received  the  gratifying  intelligence,  that  a  detachment  of  Brit- 
ish soldiery,  sent  to  garrison  Michilimackinac,  was  distant  only 
five  miles,  and  would  enter  the  fort  early  the  next  morning. 
Near  at  hand,  however,  as  relief  was  reported  to  be,  our 
anxiety  could  not  but  be  great;  for  a  long  night  v%  is  to  be 
passed,  and  our  fate  might  be  decided  before  the  morning.  To 
increase  our  apprehensions,  about  midnight  we  were  informed 


iit'ijiitniiiiiaii 


^m 


CONSPIRACY    OF    PONTIAC. 


45 


^vhich  we  had 
2d  in  it  might 
;  Ottavvas  had 

allow  till  the 
ance  was  not 
but  take  into 
y  regarded  as 
try,  before  the 
I  the  English, 
ation  ;  and  in 
5it,  assured  us 
,  that  night,  to 
ty,  to  comply 
susijectcd  our 

with  a  view 
esolved,  how- 
ve,  than  sub- 
>  a  fort ;  and 
ith  muskets. 
ce,  we  never 
ssed  quietly, 
as  held,  and 

elievingthat 

commit  our 
ly  a  refusal, 
ifidence,  ex- 
ne  to  time, 
itants,  as  to 

sunset,  we 
ent  of  Brit- 
distant  only 
:t  morning, 
to   be,    our 

^^  IS  to  be 
•riling.  To 
e  informed 


that  the  Ottawas  were  holding  a  council,  at  which  no  white 
man  was  permitted  to  be  present,  Farley  alone  excepted;  and 
him  we  suspected,  and  afterward  positively  knew  to  be  our 
greatest  enemy.  We,  on  our  part,  remained  all  night  upon 
the  alert ;  but  at  day-break  to  oiu*  surprise  and  joy,  we  saw  the 
Ottawas  preparing  to  depart.  By  sunrise,  not  a  man  of  them 
was  left  in  the  fort ;  and  indeed  the  scene  was  altogether 
changed.  The  inhabitants,  who,  while  the  Ottawas  was  pres- 
ent, had  avoided  all  connection  with  the  English  traders,  now 
came  with  congratulations.  Tliey  related  that  the  Ottawas  had 
proposed  to  them,  that  if  joined  by  the  Canadians,  they  would 
march  and  attack  the  troops  which  were  known  to  be  advanc- 
ing on  the  fort ;  and  they  added  that  it  was  their  refusal  which 
had  determined  the  Ottawas  to  depart.  "  At  noon,  three  hun- 
dred troops  of  the  sixtieth  regiment,  imder  the  command  of 
Lieutenant  Lesslie,  marched  into  the  fort ;  and  this  arrival  dis- 
sipated all  our  fears,  from  whatever  source  derived.  After  a 
few  days,  detachments  were  sent  into  the  Bay  des  Puans,  by 
which  is  the  route  to  the  Mississippi  and  at  the  mouth  of  Saint 
Joseph  which  leads  to  the  Illinois.  The  Indians  from  all 
quarters  came  to  pay  their  respects  to  the  commandant ;  and 
the  merchants  dispatched  tlieir  canoes,  though  it  was  now  the 
middle  of  September,  and  therefore  somewhat  late  in  the 
season." 

Thus  relieved  froni  his  fears,  Henry  spent  the  winter  at 
Michilimackinac  amusing  himself  as  best  he  could  by  hunting 
and  fishing.  But  few  of  the  Indians,  he  tells  us,  came  to  the 
fort  excepting  two  families,  one  of  which  was  that  of  a  chief. 
These  families  lived  on  a  river  five  leagues  below  and  came 
occasionally  with  beaver  flesh  for  sale.  This  chief  was  an 
exception  lo  the  rule,  for  instead  of  being  hostile  toward  the 
English,  he  was  warmly  attached  to  them.  But,  in  this  case 
the  exception  proved  the  rule  to  a  demonstration.  Henry  thus 
speaks  of  him.  "  He  had  been  taken  prisoner  by  Sir  William 
Johnson,  at  the  seige  of  Fort  Niagara  ;  and  had  received  from 
that  intelligent  oflicer,  his  liberty,  the  medal  usually  presented 


46 


OLD    AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


Ill 

Ml 


"!1     ■ 


to  a  chief,  and  the  British  flag.  Won  by  these  unexpected  acts 
of  kindness,  he  had  returned  to  Michilimackinac,  full  of 
praises  of  the  English,  and  hoisting  his  flag  over  his  lodge. 
This  latter  demonstration  of  his  partiality  had  nearly  cost  him 
his  life  ;  his  lodge  was  broken  down  and  his  flag  torn  to  pieces. 
The  pieces  he  carefully  gathered  up  and  preserved  with  pious 
care ;  and  whenever  he  came  to  the  fort,  he  drew  them  forth 
and  exhibited  them.  On  these  occasions  it  grew  into  a  custom 
to  give  him  as  much  ''quor  as  he  said  was  necessary  to  make 
him  cry  over  the  misfortune  of  losing  his  flag.  The  command- 
ant would  have  given  him  another ;  but  be  thought  that  he 
could  not  accept  it  without  danger." 

Upon  the  opening  of  navigation,  Henry  left  Michilimacki- 
nac to  visit  the  Sault  de  St.  Marie.  Here  he  made  the 
acquaintance  of  M.  Cadotte,  an  interpreter,  whose  wife  was  a 
Chippewa,  and  desirous  of  learning  that  language,  he  decided 
to  spend  the  succeeding  winter  in  the  family  of  his  new  found 
friend.  Here  also  there  was  a  small  .fort,  and  during  the  sum- 
mer a  small  detachment  of  troops,  under  the  command  of 
Lieut.  Jcmctte,  arrived  to  garrison  it.  Late  in  the  fall,  how- 
ever, a  destructive  tire  which  consumed  all  the  houses  except 
Cadotte's,  and  all  the  fort  supplies  made  it  necessary  to  send 
the  garrison  back  to  Michilimackinac.  The  few  that  were  left 
at  this  place  were  now  crowded  into  one  small  house  and  com- 
pelled to  gain  a  subsistance  by  hunting  and  fishing.  Thus, 
inuring  himself  to  hardships  and  familiarizing  himself  with 
the  Chippewa  tongue,  Henry  passed  the  second  winter  of  his 
sojourn  in  the  wilderness  of  the  Upper  Lakes.  Early  in  the 
succeeding  spring,  1763,  he  was  visited  by  Sir  Robert  Dover, 
an  English  gentlemen,  who,  as  Henry  tells  us,  "  was  on  a  voy- 
age of  curiosity,"  and  with  him  he  again  returned  to  Michili- 
mackinac. Here  he  intended  to  remain  until  his  clerks  should 
come  from  the  interior  and  then  go  back  to  the  Sault.  Leav- 
ing our  hero  at  the  moment  of  his  arrival  at  the  fort,  we  must 
again  turn  our  attention  to  the  tribes  farther  sor     . 

"^  It  is  difficult  to  determine,   '  says  Parkman'  which  tribe 


< 


wa| 

mi^ 

rip(| 

tanj 

anc 

maj 

(jricl 

r 
elsij 

attil 

the 

upf 

wa 


I  (liatlUktU^MliMi 


CONSPIRACY    OF    PONTIAC. 


47 


cpccted  acts 
ac,  full  of 
his  lodge, 
y  cost  him 
n  to  pieces, 
with  pious 
them  forth 
o  a  custom 
y  to  make 
command- 
lit  that  he 

;hilimacki- 
made  the 
vife  was  a 
le  decided 
lew  found 

the  sum- 
imand  of 
all,   how- 

s   except 
r  to  send 

were  left 
and  com- 
;.  Thus, 
self  with 
cr  of  his 
y  in  the 
t  Dover, 
Jn  a  voy- 

Michili- 
s  should 
Leav- 
ve  must 

ch  tribe 


was  first  to  ra  sc  the  cry  of  war.  There  were  many  who 
might  have  done  so,  for  all  the  savages  in  the  backwoods  were 
ripe  for  an  outbreak,  and  the  movement  seemca  almost  simul- 
taneous. The  Delawares  and  Senecas  were  the  most  incensed 
and  Kiashuta,  chief  of  the  latter,  was  perhaps  foremost  to 
apply  the  torch,  but  if  this  were  the  case,  he  touched  fire  to 
materials  already  on  the  point  of  igniting.  It  belonged  to  a 
greater  chief  than  he  to  give  method  and  order  to  what  would 
else  have  been  a  wild  burst  of  fury,  and  to  convert  desultory 
attacks  into  a  formidable  and  protracted  war.  But  for  Pontiac 
the  whole  might  have  ended  in  a  few  troublesome  inroads 
upon  the  frontier,  and  a  little  whooping  and  yelling  under  the 
walls  of  Fort  Pitt." 

There  has  been  some  dispute  as  to  the  nationality  of  Pon- 
tiac. Some  have  made  him  a  member  of  the  tribe  of  Sacks  or 
vSaiikies,  but  by  far  the  greater  number  have  placed  him  among 
the  Ottawas.  His  home  was  about  eight  miles  above  Detroit, 
on  Pechee  Island,  which  looks  out  upon  the  waters  of  Lake  St. 
Clair.  Plis  form  was  cast  in  the  finest  mould  of  savage  grace 
and  strength,  and  his  eye  seemed  capable  of  penetrating,  at  a 
glance,  the  secret  motives  which  actuated  the  savage  tribes 
around  him.  His  rare  personal  qualities,  his  courage,  resolu- 
tion, wisdom,  address,  and  eloquence,  together  with  the  hered- 
itary claim  to  authority  which,  according  to  Indian  custom,  he 
possessed,  secured  for  him  the  esteem  of  both  the  French  and 
English,  and  gave  him  an  influence  among  the  Lake  tribes 
greater  than  that  of  any  other  individual.  Early  in  life  he  dis- 
tinguished himself  as  a  chieftain  of  no  ordinary  ability.  In 
1746  he  commanded  a  powerful  body  of  Indians,  mostly  Otta- 
was, who  gallantly  defended  the  people  of  Detroit  against  the 
formidable  attack  of  several  combined  northern  tribes,  and  it  is 
supposed  that  he  was  present  at  the  disastrous  defeat  of  Brad- 
dock,  in  which  several  hundred  of  his  warriors  were  engaged. 
He  had  alwtiys,  at  least  up  to  the  time  when  Major  Rogers 
came  into  the  country,  been  a  firm  friend  of  the  French,  and 


48 


OLD    AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


received  many  marks  of  esteem  from  tlie  French  officer,  Mar- 
quis de  Montcalm. 

How  could  he,  thei'.,  "  the  daring  chief  of  the  Northwest," 
do  otherwise  than  dispute  the  English  claim  to  his  country  ? 
How  could  he  endure  the  sight  of  this  pco^Dlc  driving  the  game 
from  his  hunting  grounds,  and  his  friends  and  allies  from  the 
lands  they  had  so  long  possessed  ?  When  he  heard  that  Rogers 
was  advancing  along  the  lakes  to  take  possession  of  the  country, 
his  indignation  knew  no  bounds,  and  he  at  once  sent  deputies, 
requesting  him  to  halt  until  such  time  as  he  could  soe  him. 
Flattering  words  and  fair  promises  induced  him,  at  length,  to 
extend  the  hand  of  friendship  to  Rogers.  He  was  inclined  to 
live  peaceably  with  the  English  and  to  encourage  their  settling 
in  the  country  as  long  as  they  treated  him  as  he  deserved,  but 
if  they  treated  him  with  neglect  he  would  shut  up  the  way  and 
exclude  them  from  it.  He  did  not  consider  himself  a  conquered 
prince,  but  he  expected  to  be  treated  with  the  respect  and  honor 
due  to  a  king. 

While  a  system  of  good  management  might  have  allayed 
every  suspicion  and  engendered  peace  and  good  will,  a  want  of 
cordiality  increased  the  discontent,  and  Pontiac  soon  saw' that 
the  fair  promises  which  had  been  made  him  were  but  idle 
woi'ds.  The  Indians  were  becoming  more  and  more  dissat- 
isfied, and  he  began  seriously  to  apprehend  danger  from  the 
new  government  and  people.  He  saw  in  the  English  a  bound- 
less ambition  to  possess  themselves  of  every  military  position 
on  the  Northern  waters,  an  ambition  which  plainly  indicated 
to  his  far-reaching  sagacity  that  soon,  nothing  less  than  undis- 
puted possession  of  all  his  vast  domain  would  satisfy  them. 
He  saw  in  them  a  people  superior  in  arms,  but  utterly  desti- 
tute of  that  ostensible  cordiality  toward  the  Indians  personally 
to  which  his  people  had  been  accustomed  during  the  golden 
age  of  French  dominion,  and  which  they  were  apt  to  regard  as 
necessary  indications  of  good  faith.  There  seemed  no  disposi- 
tion for  national  courtesy,  individual  intercourse  or  beneficial 
commerce  of  any  kind.     All  those  circumstances  which  made 


IMHI 


CONSPIRACY   OF    PONTIAC. 


'fficcr,  Mar- 

Vorthwest," 
is  country  ? 
g  the  game 
es  from  the 
hat  Rogers 
ic  country, 
It  deputies, 
1  Sv^e  him. 
length,  to 
inclined  to 
sir  settling 
served,  but 
e  way  and 
conquered 
and  honor 

^e  aHayed 
a  want  of 
I  saw'  that 

but  idle 
re  dissat- 
from  the 
a  bound- 
^  position 
indicated 
an  undis- 
sfy  them. 
I'ly  desti- 
ersonally 
e  golden 
egard  as 

disposi- 
eneficial 
:h  made 


the  neigliborhood  of  the  French  agreeable,  and  which  might 
have  made  their  own  at  least  tolerable,  they  neglected.  Their 
conduct  never  gave  rest  to  suspicion,  while  that  of  the  French 
never  gave  rise  to  it.  Hence  the  Indians  felt,  as  Minavavana 
expressed  it,  that  they  had  "  no  father  among  the  white  men 
but  the  King  of  France,"  and  Pontiac  resolved,  as  he  had  threat- 
ened, to  "  shut  up  the  way."  His  plan,  as  we  have  said,  was 
to  make  a  contemporaneous  assault  upon  all  the  British  posts, 
and  thus  eflectually  to  extinguish  the  English  power  at  a  single 
blow.  This  was  a  stroke  of  policy  which  evinced  an  extraor- 
dinary genius,  and  demanded  for  its  successful  execution  an 
energy  and  courage  of  the  highest  order.  But  »Pontiac  was 
fuUy  equal  to  the  task.  He  was  as  skillful  in  executing  as  he 
was  bold  in  planning.  He  knew  that  success  would  multiply 
friends  and  allies,  but  friends  and  allies  were  necessary  to 
insure  success. 

First,  then,  a  council  must  be  called,  and  for  this  purpose, 
at  the  close  of  1762,  he  sent  out  his  embassadors  to  all  the  dif- 
ferent nations.  With  the  war-belt  of  wampum  and  the  toma- 
hawk stained  red  in  token  of  war,  these  swift  footed  messen- 
gers went  from  camp  to  camp  and  from  village  to  village, 
throughout  the  North,  South,  East  and  West,  and  in  whatever 
tribe  they  appeared  the  sachems  assembled  to  hear  the  v  ords 
of  the  great  Pontiac.  The  message  was  everywhere  heard  with 
approbation,  the  war-belt  accepted  and  the  hatchet  seized  as  an 
indication  that  the  assembled  chiefs  stood  pledged  to  take  part 
in  the  war. 

The  grand  council  assembled  on  the  twenty-seventh  day  of 
the  following  April,  on  the  banks  of  the  little  river  Ecorce,  not 
far  from  Detroit.  The  pipe  went  round  and  Pontiac  stepped 
forth,  plumed  and  painted  in  the  full  costume  of  war.  He 
called  into  requisition  all  the  eloquence  and  cunning  of  which 
he  was  master.  He  appealed  to  their  fears,  their  hopes,  their 
ambition,  their  cupidity,  their  hatred  of  the  English,  and  their 
love  for  their  old  friends,  the  French.  He  displayed  to  them  a 
belt  which  he  said  the  King  of  France  had  sent  him,  urging 
4 


50 


OLD    AND    XEW    .MACKINAC. 


,      I 


him  to  drive  the  English  from  the  country  and  open  tlic  way 
for  the  return  of  the  Frep.ch.  He  painted,  in  fjlowincf  colors, 
the  common  interests  o(  their  race,  and  called  upon  them  to 
make  a  stand  against  a  common  foe.  He  told  them  of  a  dream 
in  which  the  Great  i>Ianiiou  had  ;:ppcared  to  a  chief  of  the 
AbtMiakis,  saying,  '■'  I  am  the  Maker  of  heaven  and  earth,  the 
trees,  lakes,  rivers,  and  all  things  else.  I  am  the  Maker  of 
mankind  ;  and  because  I  love  you,  you  must  do  my  will.  The 
land  on  which  you  live  I  have  made  for  vou  and  not  for  others. 
Why  do  you  suffer  the  white  men  to  dwell  among  you  ?  ^I 
children,  you  have  forgotten  the  customs  and  traditions  of  y 
iprefathcrs.  Why  do  you  not  clothe  yourselves  in  skins,  ao 
they  did,  and  use  the  bows  and  arrows,  and  the  sto'.e-pointed 
laiices  which  they  used  ?  You  have  bought  guns,  knives,  ket- 
tles and  blankets  from  the  white  men,  until  you  can  no  longer 
do  without  them  ;  aud  what  is  worse,  you  have  drunk  the  poi- 
son lire-water,  which  turns  you  into  fools.  Fling  all  these 
things  away  ;  live  as  your  wise  forefathers  lived  before  you. 
And  as  for  these  English — these  dogs  dressed  in  red,  who  have 
come  to  rob  you  of  your  hunting-grounds  and  drive  away  the 
game — you  must  lift  the  hatchet  against  them.  Wipe  them 
from  the  face  of  the  earth,  and  then  you  will  win  my  favor  back 
again  and  once  more  be  happy  and  prosperous.  The  children 
of  your  great  father,  the  King  of  France,  are  not  like  the  Eng- 
lish. Never  forget  that  they  are  your  brethren.  Thc}  arc 
veiy  dear  to  me,  for  they  love  the  red  men,  and  understand  the 
true  mode  of  worshipping  me." 

Such  an  appeal  to  the  passions  and  prejudices  of  credulous 
and  excited  savages  was  well  calculated  to  produce  the  desired 
eflcct.  If  the  Great  Spirit  was  with  them,  it  was  impossible 
to  fail.  Other  speeches  were  doubtless  made,  and  before  the 
council  broke  up  the  scheme  was  well  matured. 

Thus  was  ihe  crisis  hastening  on.  While  every  principle 
of  revenge,  ambition  and  patriotisn'.  in  the  savages  was  thus 
being  roused  up  to  the  highest  pitch,  and  die  tomahawk  was 
already  lifted  for  the  blow,  scarce  a  suspicion  of  the  savage 


^mm 


CONSPIRACV    OF    I»ONTIAC. 


51 


II  tlie  way 
iii!^  colors, 
11  thcin  to 
jfa  dream 
lief  of  the 
cartli,  the 
Maker  of 
vill.  Tlie 
for  otliers. 

• 

on  ?  A4 
lis  of  y 

skins,  ac5 
e-pointed 
lives,  ket- 
110  longer 
V  the  poi- 
all  these 
fore  you. 
vlio  have- 
away  the 
pe  them 
vor  back 

children 
the  Eno- 
-"hej  arc 
stand  the 

rednlous 
;  desired 
ipossible 
fore  the 

'rinciplc 

'as  thus 
wk  was 


savage 


design  found  its  way  to  the  minds  of  the  English.  Occasion- 
ally an  English  trader  would  see  something  in  their  behavior 
which  caused  him  to  suspect  mischief,  or  "  some  scoundrel 
half-breed  would  be  heard  boasting  in  his  cups  that  before  next 
summer  he  would  have  English  hair  to  fringe  his  hunting- 
frock,"  but  these  things  caused  no  alarm.  Once,  however,  the 
plot  was  nearly  discovered.  A  friendly  Indian  told  the  com 
mander  of  Fort  Miami  that  a  war-belt  had  been  sent  to  the 
warriors  of  a  neighboring  village,  and  that  ihe  destruction  of 
himself  and  garrison  had  been  resolved  upon ;  but  when 
information  of  this  was  conveyed  to  Major  (iladwyn,  of  De- 
troit, that  officer  wrote  to  General  Amherst  stating  that,  in  his 
opinion,  there  had  been  some  irritation  among  the  Indians,  but 
that  the  affair  would  soon  blow  over,  and  that  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  his  own' fort  all  was  tranquil.  Amherst  thought  that 
the  acts  of  the  Indians  were  unwarrantable,  and  hoped  that 
they  would  be  too  sensible  of  their  own  interests  to  conspire 
against  the  English  ;  he  wished  them  to  know  that  if  they  did, 
in    his   opinion    they  would   make  a  "  contemptib'-^   figure." 

t 

"Yes,"  said  he,  "a  contonptihlc  figure  I  They  would  be  the 
sufferers,  and  in  the  end  it  would  result  in  their  destruction." 
Deluded  men  !  Almost  within  rifle  shot  of  Gladwyn's  quarters 
was  Pontiac,  the  arch  enemy  of  the  English  and  the  prime 
mover  in  the  plot,  and  the  sequel  proved  how  "  contemptible  " 
was  the  figure  which  the  savages  made ! 

From  nortii  to  south  and  from  east  to  west  the  work  of 
extirpation  soon  began.  Numbers  of  English  traders,  on  their 
way  from  all  quarters  of  the  country  to  the  different  posts,  were 
taken,  and  their  goods  made  the  prize  of  the  conquerors. 
Large  bodies  of  savages  were  seen  collecting  aroiuul  the  vari- 
ous forts,  yet,  strange  to  say,  without  exciting  any  serious  alarm. 
When  the  blow  was  struck,  which  was  nearly  at  the  same 
time,  nine  out  of  the  twelve  British  posts  were  surprised  and 
destroyed  !  It  would  doubtless  be  interesting  to  notice  in  de- 
tail these  nine  surprisals,  but  it  is  foreign  to  our  purpose  to  give 
in  full  more  than  one,  that  of  Michilimackinac.     We  may  say, 


? 


! 


1 


;i!  , 


1  I 


5* 


OLD    AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


however,  that  in  general  quite  as  much  was  effected  by  strate- 
gem  as  by  force,  and  that,  apparently,  by  a  preconcerted  sys- 
tem indicative  of  the  far-reaching  superintendence  of  the  great 
leader. 

This  chapter  may  be  appropriately  closed  with  the  follow- 
ing extracts  from  speeches  made  by  Pontiac  to  the  French  cT 
Detroit  diu'ing  the  siege  of  that  place  : 

"  I  do  not  doubt,  my  brothers,  that  this  war  is  very  trouble- 
some to  you,  for  our  warriors  are  continually  passing  and  re- 
passing through  your  settlement.  I  am  sorry  for  it.  Do  not 
think  that  I  approve  of  the  damage  that  i  •  done  by  them,  and 
as  a  proof  of  this,  remember  the  war  witl.  the  Foxes,  and  the 
part  which  I  iook  in  it.  It  is  now  seventeen  years  since  the 
Ojibwas  of  Michilimackinac,  combined  with  the  Sa-^s  and 
Foxes,  came  down  to  destroy  you.  Who  theh  defended  you  ? 
Was  it  not  I  and  my  young  men  ?  Michinac,  great  chief  of  all 
these  nations,  said  in  council  that  he  would  carry  to  his  village 
the  head  ot  your  commandant ;  th?  t  he  woidd  eat  his  heart  and 
drink  his  blood.  Did  I  not  take  your  part?  Did  I  not  go  to 
his  camp  and  say  to  him  that  if  he  wished  to  kill  the  French 
he  must  first  kill  me  and  my  wai'viors.?  Did  I  not  assist  you 
in  routing  them  and  driving  them  away?  And  now  you  think 
that  I  would  turn  my  arms  against  you  !  No,  my  brothers  ;  I 
am  the  same  French  Pontiac  who  assisted  you  seventeen  years 
ago  ;  T  am  a  Frenchman,  and  I  wish  to  die  a  Frenchman  ;  and 
I  now  repeat  to  you  that  you  and  I  are  one — that  it  is  for  both 
our  interests  that  1  should  be  avenged.  Let  me  alone.  I  do 
not  ask  you  for  aid.  for  it  is  not  in  your  powe;;  to  give  it.  I 
only  ask  provisions  for  myself  and  men.  Yet,  if  you  arc  in- 
clined to  assist  me,  I  shall  not  refuse  you.  It  would  please 
me,  and  you  yourselves  would  be  sooner  rid  of  your  troubles, 
for  I  promise  you  that  as  Soon  as  the  English  are  driven  out 
we  will  go  back  to  our  villages,  and  there  await  the  arrival  of 
our  French  father.  You  have  heard  what  I  have  to  say  •;  re- 
main at  peace,  and  I  will  watch  that  no  harm  shall  be  doi  e  to 
you,  either  by  my  men  or  by  the  other  Indians." 


UliteMikk 


"WW^ 


CONSPIRACY    OF    PONTIi«iC. 


53 


The  following  address  was  made  ut  a  more  advanced  stage 
of  the  siege,  when  Pontiac  had  become  anxious  to  secare  the 
French  as  auxiliaries  in  the  war.  Throwing  a  war-belt  into 
their  midst,  he  said  : 

"  My  brothers,  how  long  will  you  suffer  this  bad  flesh  to 
remain  upon  your  lands?  I  have  fold  you  before,  and  I  now 
tell  you  again,  that  when  I  took  up  the  hatchet,  it  was  foi  your 
good.  This  year  the  English  must  all  perish  throughout  Can- 
ada. The  Master  of  Life  commands  it,  and  you,  who  know 
h  m  better  than  we,  wish  to  oppose  his  will.  Until  n'^w  I  have 
said  nothing  on  this  matter.  1  have  not  urged  you  to  take  part 
with  us  in  the  war.  It  would  have  been  enough  h.  fl  you  been 
content  to  sit  quiet  on  your  mats,  looking  on,  wl-de  we  were 
fighting  for  you.  But  you  have  not  done  so.  You  call  your- 
selves our  friends,  and  yet  you  assist  the  English  with  provis- 
ions, and  go  about  as  spies  among  our  villages.  This  must  not 
continue.  You  must  be  either  wholly  French  or  wholly  Eng- 
lish. If  you  are  French,  take  up  that  war-belt  and  lift  the 
hatchet  with  us  ;  but  if  you  arc  English,  then  we  declare  war 
upon  you.  My  brothers,  I  know  this  is  a  hard  thing.  We 
are  all  alike  children  of  our  great  father,  the  King  of  France, 
and  it  is  hard  to  fight  among  brethren  for  the  sake  of  dogs. 
But  there  is  no  choice.  Look  upon  the  jlt,  and  let  us  hear 
your  answer." 


~. 


54 


OLD   AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


CHAPTER  IV. 


MASSACRE   AT    FORT    MACKINAC. 

The  following  description  of  Michilimackinac  is  taken 
from  Mr.  Parkman's  very  excellent  work  entitled  "  History  of 
the  Conspiracy  of  Pontiac."  "  It  is  drawn,"  says  the  writer,. 
"  from  traditional  accounts,  aided  by  a  personal  examination 
of  the  spot,  where  the  stumps  of  the  pickets  and  the  founda- 
tions of  the  houses  may  still  be  traced." 

"  In  the  spring  of  the  year  1763,  before  the  war  broke  out, 
several  English  traders  went  up  to  Michilimackinac,  some 
adopting  the  old  route  of  the  Ottawa,  and  others  that  of  Detroit 
and  the  lakes.  We  will  follow  one  of  the  latter  on  his  adven- 
turous progress.  Passing  the  fort  and  settlement  of  Detroit,  he 
soon  enters  Lake  St.  Clair,  which  seems  like  a  broad  basin 
filled  to  overflowing,  while,  along  its  for  distant  verge,  a  faint 
line  of  forest  separates  the  water  from  the  sky.  He  crosses  the 
lake,  and  his  voyageurs  next  urge  his  canoe  against  the  current 
of  the  great  river  abo^  e.  At  length  Lake  Huron  opens  before 
him,  stretching  its  liquid  expanse,  like  an  ocean,  to  the  farthest 
horizon.  His  canoe  skirts  the  eastern  shore  of  Michigan,  where 
the  forest  rises  like  a  wall  from  the  water's  edge  ;  and  as  he 
advances  northward  an  endless  line  of  stiff  and  shaggy  fir  trees, 
hung  witli  long  mosses,  fringes  the  shore  with  an  aspect  of  a 
monotonous  desolation.  In  the  space  of  two  or  three  weeks. 
K  his  Canadians  labor  well,  and  no  accident  occurs,  the  trader 
approaches  the  end  of  his  voyage.  Passing  on  his  right  the 
extensive  island  of  Rois  Blanc,  he  sees,  nearly  in  front,  the  beau- 
tiful island  of  Mackinaw — rising,  with  its  white  clifls  and  green 
foliage,  from  the  broad  breast  of  the  waters.     He  does  not  steer 


,  V.  JUUm 


MASSACRE    AT    FORT    MACKINAC. 


55 


towards  it,  for  at  that  day  the  Indians  were  its  only  tenants ; 
but  keeps  along  the  main  shore  to  tlie  left,  while  his  voyageurs 
raise  their  song  and  chorus.  Doubling  a  point  he  sees  before 
him  the  red  flag  of  England  swelling  la/.ily  in  the  wind,  and  the 
palisades  and  wooden  bastions  of  Fort  Michilimackinac  stand- 
ing close  upon  the  margin  of  the  lake.  On  the  beach  canoes 
are  drawn  up,  and  Canadians  and  Indians  are  idly  lounging. 
A  little  beyond  the  fort  is  a  cluster  of  the  white  Canadian 
houses,  roofed  with  bark,  and  protected  by  fences  of  strong 
round  pickets. 

"  The  trader  enters  at  the  gate,  and  sees  before  him  an 
extensive  square  ai*ea,  surrounded  by  high  palisades.  Numer- 
ous houses,  barracks,  and  other  buildings  form  a  smaller  square 
within,  and  in  the  vacant  space  which  they  enclose  appear  the 
red  uniforms  of  British  soldiers,  the  gr  v  coats  of  Canadians, 
and  the  gaudy  Indian  blankets,  mingled  in  picturesque  confu- 
sion, while  a  multitude  of  squaws,  with  children  of  every  hue, 
stroll  restlessly  about  the  place.  Such  was  Fort  .Michilimack- 
inack  in  1763.  Its  name,  which  in  the  Algonquin  tongue  sig- 
nifies the  Great  Turtle,  was  first,  from  a  fancied  resemblance, 
applied  to  the  neighboring  island,  and  thence  to  the  fort. 

"  Though  buried  in  a  \vilderness,  Michilimackinac  was 
still  of  no  recent  origin.  As  early  as  1671  the  Jesuits  had  es- 
tablished a  mission  near  tlie  place,  and  a  military  force  was  not 
long  in  following,  for  under  tlie  French  dominion  the  priest 
and  the  soldier  went  hand  in  hand.  Neither  toil,  nor  suiTer- 
ing,  nor  all  the  teri'ors  of  the  v>'ilderncss  could  damp  the  zeal 
of  the  unduunled  missionary ;  and  the  restless  ambition  of 
France  was  always  on  the  alert  to  seize  every  point  of  advan- 
tage, and  avail  itself  of  every  means  to  gain  ascendancy  over 
the  forest  tribes.  Besides  Michilimackinac,  there  were  two 
other  posts  in  this  nortlicrn  region.  Green  Bay  and  the  Sault 
Ste.  Marie.  Both  were  founded  at  an  early  period,  and  both 
presented  the  same  characteristic  features — a  mission  house,  a 
fort,  anil  a  cluster  of  Canadian  dwellings.  They  had  been 
originally  garrisoned  by  small  parties  of  militia,  who,  bringing 


U 


1? 


I'l'l-    ■    '!,: 


56 


OLD    AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


i     > 


their  families  with  them,  settled  on  the  spot,  and  were  founders 
of  these  little  colonies.  Michilimackinac,  much  the  largest  of 
the  three,  contained  thirty  families  within  the  palisades  of  the 
fort,  and  about  as  many  more  widiout.  Besides  its  military 
value,  it  was  important  as  a  center  of  the  fur  trade,  for  it 
was  here  that  the  traders  engaged  their  men,  and  sent  out  their 
goods  in  canoes,  under  the  charge  of  subordinates,  to  the  more 
distant  regions  of  the  Mississippi  and  the  northwest. 

"  The  Indians  near  Michilimackinac  were  the  Ojibwas 
and  Ottawas,  the  former  of  whom  claimed  the  eastern  section 
of  Michigan,  and  the  latter  the  western,  their  respective  jjor- 
tions  being  separated  by  a  line  drawn  southward  from  the  fort 
itself.  The  principal  village  of  the  Ojibwas  contained  about 
a  hundred  warriors,  and  stood  upon  the  island  of  Michilimack- 
inac, now  called  Mackinaw.  There  was  another  smaller  vil- 
lage near  the  head  of  Thunder  Bay.  The  Ottawas,  to  the 
number  of  two  hundred  and  fifty  warriors,  lived  at  the  settle- 
ment of  L'Arbre  Croche,  on  the  shores  of  Lake  Michigan,  some 
distance  southwest  of  the  fort.  This  place  was  then  the  seat  of 
the  old  Jesuit  mission  of  St.  Ignace,  oiiginally  placed  by  Father 
Marquette  on  the  northern  side  of  the  straits.  Many  of  the  Ot- 
tawas were  nominal  Catholics.  They  were  all  somewhat  im- 
proved from  their  original  savage  condition,  living  inlog  houses, 
and  cultivating  corn  and  vegetables  to  such  an  extent  as  to  sup- 
ply the  fort  with  provision,  besides  satisfying  their  own  wants. 
The  Ojibwas,  on  the  other  hand,  were  not  in  the  least  de- 
gree removed  from  their  primitive  barbarism." 

At  this  time  bot'i  these  tribes  had  recc  ivcd  from  Pontiac 
the  war-belt  of  black  and  purple  wampum  and  the  painted 
hatchet,  and  had  pledged  themselves  to  join  in  the  contest. 
Before  the  end  of  May  the  Ojibwas  or  Chippewas  received 
word  that  the  blow  had  already  been  struck  at  Detroit,  and 
wrought  up  to  the  highest  pitch  of  excitement  and  emulation, 
resolved  that  peace  should  last  no  longer.  Eager  to  reap  all 
the  glory  of  the  victory,  or  prompted  by  jealousy,  this  tribe 
neither  communicated  to  the  Ottawas  the  news  which  had  come 


.v,.-im(Miiii»i 


MASSACRE    AT    FORT    MACKINAC. 


57 


to  them  nor  their  own  resohition  to  make  an  immediate  assault 
upon  Michilimackinac ;  hence  the  Ottavvas,  as  we  shall  also 
learn  fron?  Henry's  account,  had  no  part  in  that  blood)'  tragedy. 
There  were  other  tribes  however,  which,  attracted  by  rumors 
of  impending  war,  had  gathered  at  Michilimackinac,  and  which 
took  part  in  the  struggle. 

There  is  a  discrepancy  between  the  official  report  of  Capt. 
Ethrington,  commander  of  the  post,  and  Henry's  statement ; 
the  former  making  the  garrison  to  consist  of  thirty-five  men, 
with  their  officers,  and  the  latter,  as  we  shall  see,  of  ninety. 
We  give  the  reader  the  facts  just  as  we  find  them  recorded, 
leaving  him  to  reconcile  this  diflerence  in  his  own  way.  Per- 
haps, as  Parkman  suggests,  Henry  intended  to  include  in  his 
enumeration  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  fort,  both  .soldiers  and 
Canadians. 

We  left  Henry  at  the  moment  of  his  arrival  at  the  fort. 
We  must  now  allow  him  to  go  on  with  his  story,  for  he  is  far 
better  qualified  for  that  task  than  we  are. 

"  When  I  reached  Michilimackinac  I  found  several  other 
traders  who  had  arrived  before  me,  from  difi'erent  parts  of  the 
country,  and  who,  in  general,  declared  the  dispositions  of  the 
Indians  to  be  hostile  to  the  English,  and  even  apprehended 
some  attack.  M.  Laurent  Ducharme  distinctly  informed  Major 
Ethrington  that  a  plan  was  absolutely  conceived  foi  destroying 
him,  his  garrison,  and  all  the  English  in  the  upper  country, 
but  the  commandant,  believing  this  and  other  reports  to  be 
without  foundation,  proceeding  only  from  idle  or  ill-disposed 
persons,  and  of  a  tendency  to  do  mischief,  expressed  much  dis- 
pleasure against  M.  Ducharme,  and  threatened  to  send  the  next 
person  who  should  bring  a  story  of  the  same  kind  a  prisoner  to 
Detroit. 

"  The  garrison  at  this  time  consisted  of  ninety  privates, 
two  subalterns,  and  the  commandant,  and  the  English  mer- 
chants at  the  fort  were  four  in  number.  Thus  strong,  few  en- 
tertained anxiety  concerning  the  Indians,  who  had  no  weapons 
but  small  arms.  • 


w 


l-^^^'li! 


OLD    AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


"  Meanwhile  the  Indians  from  every  quarter  were  daily 
assembling  in  unusual  numbers,  but  with  every  appearance  of 
friendship,  frequenting  the  fort  and  disposing  of  their  peltries 
in  sucli  a  manner  as  to  dissipate  almost  any  one's  fears.  For 
myself,  on  one  occasion  I  took  the  liberty  of  observing  to  Major 
Ethrington  that,  in  my  judgment,  no  confidence  ought  to  be 
placed  in  them,  and  that  I  was  informed  no  less  than  four  hun- 
dred lay  around  the  fort.  In  return  the  Major  only  rallied  mc 
on  my  timidity,  and  it  is  to  be  confessed  that  if  this  officer 
neglected  admonition  on  his  part,  so  did  I  on  mine.  Shortly 
after  my  first  arrival  at  Michilimackinac  in  the  preceding  year, 
a  Chippewa  named  Wa'wa'tam  began  to  come  often  to  my 
house,  betraying  in  his  demeanor  strong  marks  of  personal 
regard.  After  this  had  continued  for  some  time,  he  came  oii 
a  certain  day  bringing  with  him  his  whole  family,  and  at  the 
same  time  a  large  present,  consisting  of  skins,  sugar,  and  dried 
meat.  Having  laid  these  in  a  heap  he  commenced  a  speech, 
in  which  he  informed  me  that,  some  years  before,  he  had  ob- 
served a  fast,  devoting  himself,  according  to  the  custom  of  his 
nation,  to  solitude  and  the  mortification  of  his  body,  in  the  hope 
to  obtain  from  the  Great  Spirit  protection  through  all  his  days  ; 
that  on  this  occasion  he  had  dreamed  of  adopting  an  English- 
man as  his  son,  brother,  and  friend  ;  that  from  the  moment  in 
which  he  first  beheld  mc  he  had  recognized  me  as  the  person 
whom  the  Great  Spirit  had  been  pleased  to  point  out  to  him 
for  a  brother ;  that  he  hoped  that  I  woukl  not  refuse  his  pres- 
ent, and  that  he  should  forever  regard  me  as  one  of  his  familv. 

''  I  could  do  no  otherwise  than  accept  the  present,  and  de- 
clare my  willingness  to  have  so  good  a  man  as  this  appeared  to 
be  for  my  friend  and  bu/ther.  1  offered  a  present  in  return  Tor 
thatwhidi  I  liad  received,  wJiich  Wawatam  accepted,  :'.nd  then 
thanking  me  for  the  favor  which  he  said  that  I  had  rendered 
liim  he  left  -ne,  and  soon  after  set  out  on  his  winter's  hunt. 

''  Twelve  months  had  now  elapsed  since  the  occurrence  of 
this  incident,  and  I  had  almost  forgotten  the  person  of  my 
brother^  wlien.  on  the  second  day  of  June,  Wawatam  came 


MASSACRE   AT    FORT    MACKlNxVC. 


59 


again  to  my  house,  in  a  temper  of  mind  visibly  melancholy  and 
thoufijhtful.  He  told  me  that  he  had  just  returned  from  his 
uointcring-ground^  and  I  asked  after  his  health ;  but  without 
answering  my  question  he  went  on  to  say  that  he  was  very 
sorry  to  find  me  returned  from  the  Sault ;  that  he  had  intended 
to  go  to  that  jDlace  himself,  immediately  after  his  arrival  at 
Michilimackinac  ;  and  that  he  wished  me  to  go  there  along 
with  him  and  his  family  the  next  morning.  To  all  this  he 
joined  an  inquiry  whether  or  not  the  commandant  had  heard 
bad  news,  adding  that,  during  the  wintei,  he  had  himself  been 
frequently  disturbed  with  the  tioise  of  evil  birds ;  and  further 
suggesting  that  there  were  numerous  Indians  near  the  fort, 
many  of  whom  had  never  shown  themselves  within  it.  Wa- 
watam  was  about  forty-five  years  of  age,  of  an  excellent  char- 
acter among  his  nation,  and  a  chief. 

''  Referring  much  of  what  I  heard  to  the  peculiarities 
of  the  Indian  character,  I  did  not  pay  all  the  attention 
winch  they  w^ill  be  fijund  to  have  deserved  to  the  entreat- 
ies and  remarks  of  my  visitor,  I  answered  that  I  could  not  think 
of  going  to  the  Sault  so  soon  as  the  next  morning,  but  would 
follow  him  there  after  the  arrival  of  my  clerks.  Finding  him- 
self unable  to  prevail  with  me,  he  withdrew  for  that  day,  but 
early  the  next  morning  he  came  again,  bringing  with  him  his 
wife  and  a  present  of  dried  meat.  At  this  interview,  after  stat- 
ing that  he  had  severed  packs  of  beaver,  for  which  he  intended 
to  deal  with  me,  he  expressed  a  second  *^'me  his  apprehensions 
from  the  numerous  Indians  who  were  around  the  fort,  and  ear- 
nestly pressed  me  to  consent  to  an  inin.cdiate  departure  for  the 
Sault.  As  a  reason  for  this  particular  request  he  assured  me 
that  all  the  Indians  proposed  to  come  in  a  body  that  day  to  the 
fort,  to  demand  liquor  of  the  commandant,  and  that  he  wished 
me  to  be  gone  before  tliey  sliould  grow  intoxicated.  T  had 
made,  at  the  peri(xl  to  wh'jh  I  am  no'.v  referring,  so  much  pro- 
gress in  tlic  language  in  wliicli  Wawatam  addressed  me,  as  to 
be  able  to  hold  an  ordinary  covcrsation  in  it ;  but  the  Indian 
manner  of  speech  is  so  extravagantly  figurative  that  it  is  only 


fpr- 


1         ,|: 

•   ;       ;;' 

1            ,: 

6o 


OLD    AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


I   '! 


:!  I' 


for  a  very  perfect  master  to  follow  and  comprehend  it  entirely. 
Had  I  been  further  advanced  in  this  respect  I  think  that  I 
shonkl  liave  cjathcred  so  much  information  from  this  my  friendly 
monitor  as  would  have  put  me  into  possession  of  the  designs  of 
the  enemy,  and  enabled  me  to  save  others  as  well  as  myself; 
as  it  was,  it  unfortunately  happened  that  I  turned  a  deaf  ear  to 
everything,  leaving  Wawatum  and  his  wife,  after  long  and  pa- 
tient, but  inert'ectual  eflbrts,  to  dejDart  alone,  with  dejected  coun- 
tenances, and  not  before  they  had  each  let  fall  some  tears. 

"  In  the  course  of  the  same  day,  I  observed  that  the  In- 
dians came  in  great  numbers  into  the  fort,  purchasing  toma- 
hawks, (small  axes  of  one  pound  weight,)  and  frequently  de- 
siring to  see  silver  arm-bands,  and  other  valuable  ornaments,  of 
which  I  had  a  l.n-fre  quantity  for  sale.  These  ornaments,  how- 
ever, they,  in  no  instance,  purchased ;  but,  after  turning  them 
over,  left  them,  saying  that  they  would  call  again  the  next  day. 
Their  motive,  as  it  afterward  appeared,  was  no  other  than  the 
very  artful  one  of  discovering,  by  requesting  to  see  them,  the 
particular  places  of  their  deposit,  so  that  they  might  lay  their 
hands  on  them,  in  the  moment  of  pillage,  with  the  greater 
certainty  and  dispatch. 

"  At  night  I  turned  in  my  mind  the  visits  of  Wawatam  ; 
but,  though  they  were  calculated  to  excite  uneasiness,  nothing 
induced  me  to  believe  that  serious  mischief  was  at  hand. 

"  The  next  day,  being  the  fourth,  of  June,  was  the  king's 
birthday.  The  morning  was  sultry.  A  Chippewa  came  to 
tell  me  that  his  nation  was  going  to  play  at  bag'gat'iway,  with 
the  Sacs  or  Saiikies,  another  Indian  nation,  for  a  high  wager. 
He  invitetl  me  to  witness  the  sport,  adding  that  the  command- 
ant was  to  be  there,  and  would  bet  on  the  side  of  the  Chippe- 
was.  In  consequence  of  this  information,  I  went  to  the  com- 
mandant, and  expostulated  with  him  a  little,  representing  that 
the  Indians  might  possibly  have  some  sinister  end  if.  view  ; 
but  the  commandant  only  smiled  at  my  suspicions." 

The  game  of  baggativvay,  which  the  Indians  played  upon 
that  memorable  occasion,  was  the  most  exciting  sport  in  whicli 


Mil  M' 


MASSACRE    AT    FOUT    MACKINAC. 


6i 


t  entirely. 

nk  that  I 
ly  friendly 
designs  of 
as  myself; 
leaf  car  to 
ig  and  pa- 
cted  coun- 
ears. 

at  the  In- 
ing  toma- 
juently  de- 
aments,  of 
ents,  how- 
iiing  them 
:  next  day. 
r  than  the 

them,  the 
t  lay  their 
he  greater 

Vawatam  ; 
»s,  nothing 
land. 

the  king's 
a  came  to 
way,  with 
gh  wager, 
command- 
ic  Chippc- 

tiie  com- 
nting  that 

ii'.  view ; 

ayed  upon 
t  in  which 


the  red  man  could  engage.  It  was  played  with  bat  and  ball. 
The  bat,  so  called,  was  about  four  feet  in  length  and  an  inch 
in  diameter.  It  was  made  of  the  toughest  material  that  could 
be  found.  At  one  end  it  was  curved,  and  terminated  in  a  sort 
of  racket,  or  perhaps,  more  properly,  a  ring,  in  which  a  net- 
work of  cord  was  loosely  woven.  The  players  wore  not 
allowed  to  touch  the  ball  with  the  hand,  but  caught  it  in  this 
network  at  the  end  of  the  bat.  At  either  end  of  the  ground  a 
tall  post  was  planted.  These  posts  marked  the  stations  of  the 
rival  parties,  and  were  sometimes  a  mile  apart.  The  object 
of  each  party  was  to  defend  its  own  post  and  carry  the  ball 
to  that  of  the  adversary. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  game  the  main  body  of  tlie 
players  assemble  half  way  between  the  two  posts.  Every  eye 
sparkles,  and  every  cheek  is  already  aglow  with  excitement. 
The  ball  is  tossed  high  into  the  air,  and  a  general  stri.ggle  en- 
sues to  secure  it  a-  it  descends.  He  who  succeeds  stirts  for 
the  goal  of  the  adversary,  holding  it  high  above  his  heac'i.  The 
opposite  party,  with  merry  yells,  are  swift  to  j^ursue.  His 
course  is  intercepted,  and  rather  than  see  the  ball  taken  from 
iiim,  he  throws  it,  as  the  boy  throws  a  stone  from  a  sling,  as 
far  towards  the  goal  of  the  adversary  as  he  can.  An  adver- 
sary in  the  game  catches  it  and  sends  it  whizzing  back  in  the 
opposite  direction.  Hither  and  thither  it  goes :  now  far  to 
the  right,  now  as  far  to  the  left ;  now  near  to  the  one,  now  as 
near  to  the  other  goal ;  the  whole  band  crowding  continually 
after  it  in  the  wildest  confusion,  until,  finally,  some  agile  figure, 
more  fleet  of  foot  thiui  others,  succeeds  in  bearing  it  to  the  goal 
of  the  opposite  party. 

Persons  now  living  upon  this  island,  who  have  frequently 
seen  this  game  played  by  the  Indians,  and  themselves  partici- 
pated in  it,  inform  the  writer  that  often  a  whole  day  is 
insufficient  to  decide  the  contest.  When  such  is  the  case,  the 
following  day  is  taken,  and  the  game  begun  anew.  As  many 
as  six  or  seven  hundred  Indians  sometimes  engage  in  a  single 
game,  while  it  may  be  played  by  fifty.     In  the  heat  of  the  con- 


62 


OLD    AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


<     \ 


m  ''■' 


test,  when  all  are  runniii!^  at  their  p^rcatest  speed,  if  one 
stmnblcs  and  falls,  fifty  or  a  hundred,  wb.o  arc  in  close  pursuit 
and  unable  to  stop,  pile  over  him,  forming  a  mound  of  human 
bodies,  and  frequently  players  are  so  bruised  as  to  be  unable 
to  proceed  in  the  game. 

This  game,  with  its  attendant  noise  and  violence,  was  well 
calculated  to  divert  the  attention  of  ollicers  and  men,  and  thus 
permit  the  Indians  to  take  possession  of  the  fort.  To  make 
their  success  more  certain,  they  prcvaileil  upon  as  many  as 
they  could  to  come  out  of  the  fort,  while  at  the  same  time  their 
squaws,  wrapped  in  blankets,  beneath  which  they  concealed 
the  murderous  weapons,  were  placed  inside  the  enclosure. 
The  plot  was  so  ingeniously  laid  that  no  one  suspected  danger. 
The  discipline  of  the  garrison  was  relaxed,  and  the  soldiers 
permitted  to  stroll  about  and  view  the  sport,  without  weapons 
of  defence.  And  even  when  the  ball,  as  if  by  chance,  was 
lifted  high  in  the  air,  to  descend  inside  the  pickets,  and  was 
followed  by  four  hundred  savages,  all  eager,  all  struggling,  all 
shouting,  in  the  uni'estrained  pursuit  of  a  rude,  athletic  exer- 
cise, no  alarm  was  felt  until  the  shrill  war-whoop  told  the 
startled  garrison  that  the  slaughter  had  actually  began. 

Henry  continues :  ''  I  did  not  go  myself  to  see  the  matcli 
which  was  now  to  be  played  without  the  fort,  because,  there 
being  a  canoe  prepared  to  depart  on  the  following  day,  for 
Montreal,  I  employed  myself  in  writing  letters  to  my  friends ; 
and  even  when  a  fellow  trader,  ]Mr.  Tracy,  happened  to  call 
upon  me,  saying  that  another  canoe  had  just  arrived  from 
Detroit,  and  proposing  that  I  should  go  with  him  to  the  beach, 
to  inquire  the  news,  it  so  happened  that  I  still  remained,  to 
finish  my  letters,  promising  to  follow  Mr.  Tracy  in  the  course 
of  a  few  ininutes.  Mr.  Tracy  had  not  gone  more  than  twenty 
paces  from  my  door,  when  I  heard  an  Indian  war-cry,  and  a 
noise  of  general  confusion.  Going  instantly  to  my  window,  I 
saw  a  crowd  of  Indians,  within  the  fort,  furiously  cutting  down 
and  scalping  every  English  lan  they  found.  In  particular  I 
witnessed  the  fate  of  Lieutenant  Jeniette. 


t 


MASSACRE    AT    FOUT    MACKINAC. 


63 


"  T  had,  ill  the  room  \n  which  T  was,  a  fowlinji-piocc. 
loaded  witli  swan  shot.  This  1  iinincdiatcly  seized,  and  held 
it  for  a  few  minutes,  waiting  to  hear  the  drum  beat  to  arms. 
In  this  dreadful  interval  I  saw  several  of  my  countrymen  fall, 
and  more  than  one  struggling  between  the  knees  of  an  Indian, 
who,  holding  him  in  this  maimer,  scalped  him  wliile  yet  living. 
"  At  length,  disajjpointed  in  the  hope  of  seeing  resistance 
made  to  the  enemy,  and  sensible,  of  course,  that  no  ellbrt  of 
my  own  unassisted  arm  could  avail  against  four  hundred 
Indians,  I  thought  only  of  seeking  shelter.  Amid  the  slaughter 
which  was  raging,  I  observed  many  of  the  Canadian  inhabit- 
ants of  the  fort  calmly  looking  on,  neither  opposing  the  Indians 
nor  sutfering  injury  :  and,  from  tliis  circumstance,  I  conceived 
a  hope  of  finding  security  in  their  houses. 

"  Between  the  yard-door  of  my  own  house  and  tliat  of 
M.  Langlade,  my  next  neighbor,  there  was  only  a  low  fence, 
over  which  I  easily  climbed.  At  my  entrance  I  found  the 
whole  family  at  the  windows,  gazing  at  the  scene  of  blood 
before  them.  I  addressed  myself  immediately  to  AI.  Langlade, 
begging  that  he  W'ould  put  me  into  some  place  of  safety  until 
the  heat  of  the  atVair  should  be  over,  an  act  of  charity  by 
which  he  might  perhaps  preserve  me  ^from  the  general  mas- 
sacre ;  but,  while  I  uttered  my  petition,  M.  Langhule,  who  had 
looked  for  a  moment  at  me,  turned  again  to  the  window, 
shrugcfing  his  shoulders,  and  intimating  that  he  could  do 
nothing  for  me  :     "  Qiie  voudriez — vous  que  j'en  ferais  ?  " 

"  This  was  a  moment  for  despair  ;  but,  the  next,  a  Pani 
woman,  a  slave  of  ISl.  Langlade,  beckoned  me  to  follow  her. 
She  brought  me  to  a  door,  which  she  opened,  desiring  me  to 
enter,  and  telling  me  that  it  led  to  the  garret,  where  I  must  go 
and  conceal  myself.  I  joyfully  obeyed  her  directions ;  and 
she,  having  followed  me  up  to  the  garret  door,  locked  it  after 
me,  and  with  great  presence  of  mind  took  away  the  key. 

"  This  shelter  obtained,  if  shelter  I  could  hope  to  find  it, 
I  was  naturally  anxious  to  know  what  might  still  be  passing 
without.     Through  an  aperture,  which  alforded  me  a  view  of 


H 


OLD    AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


lljf:: 


tlic  !irca  of  the  fort,  I  l)chcl(l,  in  sliiipcs  tlic  foulest  ;iti(l  most 
terrible,  the  ferocious  triumphs  of  barbarian  conc[uerors.  The 
(lead  were  scalped  and  hiau^led  ;  the  dyinjjf  were  writhing  anil 
shriekin<f,  u'uler  t!ie  unsatiated  knife  and  tomahawk ;  and, 
from  the  bodies  ot  some,  ripped  open,  their  butchers  were 
drinking  the  blood,  scooped  up  in  the  hollow  of  joined  hands, 
and  quatlbd  amid  shouts  of  rage  and  victory.  I  was  shaken, 
not  only  with  horror,  but  with  fear.  The  suflerings  which  I 
witnessed,  I  seemed  on  the  point  of  experiencing.  No  long 
time  elapsed  before  every  one  being  destroyed,  who  could  be 
found,  there  was  a  general  cry  of  "  All  is  linished  !  "  At  the 
same  instant  I  heard  some  of  the  Indians  enter  the  house  in 
which  I  was.  The  garret  was  separated  trom  the  room  below 
only  by  a  layer  of  single  boards,  at  once  the  flooring  of  the 
one  and  the  ceiling  of  the  other.  I  could  therefore  hear  every- 
thing that  passed  ;  and  the  Indians  no  sooner  came  in  than 
they  inquired  whether  or  not  any  Englishman  were  in  the 
house.  M.  Langlade  replied,  that  "  he  could  not  say," — he 
"  did  not  know  of  any  ;  " — answers  in  which  he  did  not  exceed 
the  truth  ;  for  the  Pani  woman  had  not  only  hidden  me  by 
stealth,  but  kept  my  secret,  and  her  own.  M.  Langlade  was, 
therefore,  as  I  presume,  as  far  from  a  wish  to  destroy  me  as  he 
was  careless  about  savihg  me,  when  he  added  lo  these  answers, 
that  "  they  might  examine  for  themselves,  and  would  soon  be 
satisfied  as  to  the  oi)ject  of  their  question."  Saying  this,  he 
brought  tliem  to  the  garret  door. 

"  The  state  of  my  mind  will  be  imagined.  Arrived  at 
the  door,  some  delay  was  occasioned  hy  the  absence  of  the  key, 
and  a  few  moments  were  thus  allowed  me  in  which  to  look 
around  me  for  a  hiding  place.  In  one  corner  of  the  garret  was 
a  heap  of  those  vessels  of  birch  bark  used  in  maple-sugar  mak- 
ing, as  I  have  recently  described. 

"  The  door  was  unlocked,  and  opening,  and  the  Indians 
ascending  the  stairs,  before  I  had  completely  crept  into  a  small 
opening  which  presenteil  itself  at  one  end  of  the  heap.  An 
instant  later  four  Indians  entered  the  room,  all  armed  with  torn- 


MASSACUK    AT    FOIIT    MACKINAC. 


65 


ahawks,  and  all  besmeared  with  blood  upon  every  part  of  their 
bodies. 

"  The  die  appeared  to  be  cast.  I  could  scarcely  breathe, 
but  I  thought  that  the  throbbing  of  my  heart  occasioned  a  noise 
loud^enough  to  betray  me.  The  Indians  walked  in  every  direc- 
tion about  the  garret,  and  one  of  them  ajoproached  me  so  closely 
that  at  a  particular  moment  had  he  put  forth  his  hand  he  must 
have  touched  me.  Still  I  remained  undiscovered,  a  circum- 
stance to  which  the  dark  color  of  my  clothes,  and  the  want  of 
light  in  a  room  which  had  no  window,  and  i'x  the  corner  in 
which  I  was,  must  have  contributed.  In  a  word,  after  taking 
several  turns  in  the  room,  during  which  they  told  M.  Langlade 
how  many  they  had  killed,  and  how  many  scalps  they  had 
taken,  they  returned  down  stairs,  and  I,  with  sensations  not  to 
be  expressed,  hoard  the  door,  which  was  the  barrier  between 
me  and  my  fate,  locked  for  the  second  time. 

"  There  was  a  feather-bed  on  the  floor,  and  on  this,  ex- 
hausted as  I  was  by  the  agitation  of  my  mind,  I  threw  myself 
down  and  fell  asleep.  In  this  state  I  remained  till  the  dark  of 
the  evening,  when  I  was  awakened  by  a  second  opening  of  the 
door.  The  person  that  now  entered  was  M.  Langlade's  wife, 
who  was  much  surprised  at  finding  mc,  but  advised  me  not  to 
be  uneasy,  observing  that  the  Indians  had  killed  most  of  the  Eng- 
lish, but  that  she  hoped  I  might  myself  escape.  A  shower  of 
rain  having  begun  to  tall,  she  had  como  to  stop  a  hole  in  the 
roof.  On  her  going  away  I  begged  her  to  send  me  a  little 
water  to  drink,  which  she  did. 

"  As  night  was  now  advancing,  I  continued  to  lie  on  the 
bed,  ruminating  on  my  condition,  but  unable  to  discover  a 
source  from  which  I  could  hope  for  life.  A  flight  to  Detroit 
had  no  jirobable  chance  of  success.  The  distance,  from  Mich- 
ilimackinac,  was  four  hundred  miles  ;  I  was  without  provisions  ; 
and  the  whole  length  of  the  road  lay  through  Indian  countries, 
countries  of  an  enemy  in  armS;  where  the  first  man  whom  I 
should  meet  would  kill  me.  To  stay  where  I  was,  threatened 
nearly  the  same  issue.    As  before,  fatigue  of  mind,  and  not 


i 


m 


1 


PT^ 


66 


OLD   AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


tranquility,   suspended   my   cares,  and   procured   me   further 
sleep. 

"  The  respite  which  sleep  afforded  me,  during  the  night, 
was  put  an  end  to  b}'  the  return  of  morning.  I  was  again  on 
the  rack  of  apprehension.  At  sunrise  I  heard  the  family  stir- 
ring, and,  presently  after,  Indian  voices,  informing  M.  Lang- 
lade that  they  had  not  found  my  hapless  self  among  the  dead, 
and  that  they  supposed  me  to  be  somewhere  concealed.  M. 
Langlade  appeared,  from  what  followed,  to  be,  by  this  time, 
acquainted  with  the  place  of  my  retreat,  of  which  no  doubt 
he  had  been  informed  by  his  wife.  The  poor  woman,  as  soon 
as  the  Indians  mentioned  me,  declared  to  her  husband,  in  the 
French  tongue,  that  he  should  no  longer  keep  me  in  his  house, 
but  deliver  me  up  to  my  pursuers ;  giving  as  a  reason  for  this 
measure,  that  should  the  Indians  discover  his  instrumentality 
in  my  concealment,  they  might  avenge  it  on  her  children,  and 
that  it  was  better  that  I  should  die  than  they.  M.  Langlade 
resisted,  at  first,  this  sentence  of  his  wife's,  but  soon  suffered 
her  to  jjrevail,  informing  the  Indians  tliat  he  had  been  told  I 
was  in  the  house,  that  I  had  come  there  without  his  knowledge, 
and  that  he  would  put  me  into  their  hands.  This  was  no 
sooner  expressed  than  he  began  to  ascend  the  stairs,  the 
Indians  following  upon  his  heels. 

"  I  now  resigned  myself  to  the  fate  with  which  I  was 
menaced  ;  and  regarding  every  attempt  at  concealment  as  vain, 
I  arose  from  the  bed,  and  presented  myself  full  in  view  to  the 
Indians  who  were  entering  the  room.  They  were  all  in  a  state 
of  intoxication,  and  entirely  naked,  except  about  the  middle. 
One  of  them,  named  Wenniway,  whom  I  had  previously 
known,  and  who  was  upward  of  six  feet  in  height,  had  his 
entire  foce  and  body  covered  with  charcoal  and  grease,  only 
that  a  white  spot,  of  two  inches  in  diameter,  encircled  either 
eye.  This  man,  wal  .ing  up  to  me,  seized  me,  with  one  hand, 
by  the  collar  of  the  i-  it,  while  in  the  other  he  held  a  large 
carving-knife,  a>  n"  lo  plunge  it  into  my  breast;  his  eyes, 
meanwhile,  wer(.-  ^xjd  steadfastly  on  mine.     At  length,  after 


f  I' 


MASSACRE   AT   FORT   MACKINAC. 


67 


some  seconds  of  the  most  anxious  suspense,  hs  dropped  his 
arm,  saying,  "  I  won't  kill  you  ! "  To  this  he  added,  that  he 
had  been  frequently  engaged  in  wars  against  the  English,  and 
had  brought  away  many  scalps  ;  that,  on  a  certain  occasion,  he 
had  lost  a  brother  whose  name  was  Musinigon,  and  that  I 
should  be  called  after  him. 

"  A  reprieve,  upon  any  terms,  placed  me  among  the 
livii:g,  and  gave  me  back  the  sustaining  voice  of  hope  ;  but 
Wenniway  ordered  rie  down  stairs,  and  there  informing  me 
that  I  was  to  be  taken  to  his  cabin,  where,  and  indeed  every- 
where else,  the  Indians  were  all  mad  with  liquor,  death  again 
was  threatened,  and  not  as  possible  only,  but  as  certain.  I 
mentioned  my  fean;  on  this  subject  to  M.  Langlade,  begging 
him  to  represent  t'^e  danger  to  my  master.  M,  Langlade,  in 
this  instance,  did  not  withhold  his  compassion,  and  Wenniway 
immediately  consented  that  I  should  ren'.ain  where  1  was,  until 
he  foimd  another  opportunity  to  take  me  away. 

"  Thus  far  secure,  I  re-ascended  ny  garret  .stairs,  in  order 
to  place  myself  the  fitrthest  possible  out  of  the  reach  of  insult 
from  drunken  Indians  ;  but  I  had  not  remained  there  more  than 
an  hour,  when  I  was  called  to  the  room  below,  in  which  was 
an  Indian,  who  said  that  I  must  go  with  him  out  of  the  fort, 
Wenniway  having  sent  'lim  to  fetch  me.  This  man,  as  well  as 
Wenniway  himself,  I  had  seen  before.  In  the  preceding  year 
I  had  allowed  him  to  take  goods  on  credit,  for  which  he  was 
still  in  my  debt ;  and  some  sliort  time  previous  to  the  surprise 
of  the  fort  he  had  said,  upon  my  upl)raiding  him  with  want  of 
honesty,  that  '  he  would  pay  me  before  long  ! '  This  speech 
now  came  fresh  into  my  memory,  and  led  me  to  suspect  that 
the  fellow  had  formed  a  design  against  my  life.  I  communi- 
cated the  suspicion  to  M.  Langlade,  but  he  gave  for  answer, 
that  I  was  not  my  own  master,  and  mubt  do  as  I  was  ordered. 

"  The  Indian,  on  his  part,  directed  that  before  I  left  the 
house  I  should  undress  myself,  declaring  that  my  coat  and 
shirt  would  become  him  better  than  they  did  me.  Ills  pleasure, 
in  this  respect,  being  complied  with,  no  other  alternative  was 


68 


OLD   AND  NEW  MACKINAC, 


left  me  than  either  to  go  out  naked,  or  to  put  on  the  clothes  of 
tlie  Indian,  which  he  freely  gave  me  in  exchange.  His  motive 
for  thus  stripping  iT>e  of  my  own  apparel,  was  no  otlier,  as  I 
afterward  learned,  than  this-,  that  it  might  not  be  stained  with 
blood  wjien  he  should  kill  me. 

"  I  was  now  told  to  proceed,  and  my  driver  followed  me 
close  until  I  had  passed  the  gate  of  the  fort,^  when  I  turned 
toward  the  spot  where  1  knew  the  Indians-  to  be  encamped. 
This,  however,  did  not  suit  the  purpose  of  my  enemy,  who 
seized  me  by  the  arm,  and  drew  me  violently  in  the  opposite 
direction,  to  the  distance  of  fifty  yards  above  the  fort.  Here, 
finding  that  I  was  approaching  the  bushes  and  sand-hills,  I 
determined  to  proceed  no  further,  but  told  the  Indian  that  I 
believed  he  meant  to  murder  me,  and  that  if  so,  he  might  a& 
well  strike  w^here  I  was  as  at  any  greater  distance.  He  re- 
plied, with  coolness,  that  my  suspicions  were  just,  and  that  he 
meant  to  pay  me,  in  this  manner,  for  my  goods.  At  the  same 
time  he  produced  a  knife,  and  held  me  in  a  position  to  receive 
the  intended  blow.  Both  this,  and  that  which  followed,  were 
necessarily  the  affair  of  a  moment.  By  some  effort,  too  sudden 
and  too  little  dependent  on  thought  to  be  explained  or  remem- 
bered, I  was  enabled  to  arrest  his  arm  and  give  him  a  sudden 
push,  by  which  I  turned  him  from  me,  and  released  myself 
from  his  grasp.  This  was  no  sooner  done,  than  I  ran  toward 
the  fort  with  all  the  swiff:ness  in  my  power,  the  Indian  follow- 
ing me,  and  I  expecting  every  moment  to  feel  his  knife.  I 
succeeded  in  my  flight,  and,  on  entering  the  fort,  I  saw  Wen- 
niway  standing  in  the  midst  of  the  area,  and  to  him  I  hastened 
for  protection.  Wenniway  desired  the  Indian  to  desist ;  but 
the  latter  pursued  me  around  him,  making  several  strokes  at 
me  with  his  knife,  and  foaming  at  the  mouth,  with  rage  at  the 
repeated  failure  of  his  purpose.  At  length  Wenniway  drew 
near  to  M.  Langlade's  house,  and,  the  door  being  open,  I  ran 
into  it.  The  Indian  followed  me,  but  on  my  entering  the 
house,  he  voluntarily  abandoned  the  pursuit. 

'^  Preserved  so  often  and  so  imcxpectcdly,  as  it  had  now 


MASSACRE    AT    FOET    MACKINAC. 


69 


been  my  lot  to  be,  I  returned  to  my  garret  with  a  strong  in- 
clination to  believe  that,  through  the  will  of  an  overruling 
Power,  no  Indian  enemy  could  do  me  hurt ;  but  new  trials,  as 
I  believed,  were  at  hand,  when,  at  ten  o'clock  in  the  evening, 
I  was  roused  from  sleep  and  once  more  desired  to  descend  the 
stairs.  Not  less,  however,  to  my  satisfaction  than  surprise,  I 
was  summoned  only  to  meet  Major  Etherington,  Mr.  Bostwick, 
and  Lieutenant  Lesslie,  who  were  in  the  room  below.  These 
gentlemen  had  been  taken  prisoners,  while  looking  at  the 
game,  without  the  fort,  and  immediately  stripped  of  all  their 
clothes.  They  were  now  sent  into  the  fort,  under  the  charge 
of  Canadians,  because,  the  Indians  having  resolved  on  getting 
drunk,  the  chiefs  were  apprehensive  that  they  would  be  mur- 
dered, if  they  continued  in  the  camp.  Lieutenant  Jemette  and 
seventy  soldiers  had  been  killed  ;  and  but  twenty  Englishmen, 
including  soldiers,  were  still  alive.  Tlicse  were  all  within  the 
fort,  together  with  nearly  three  hundred  Canadians  (belonging 
to  the  canoes,  &c.) 

"  These  being  our  numbers,  myself  and  others  proposed 
to  Major  Etherington  to  make  an  eflbrt  for  regaining  posses- 
sion of  the  fort,  and  maintaining  it  against  the  Indians.  The 
Jesuit  missionary  was  consulted  on  the  project;  but  he  dis- 
coiu'aged  us  by  his  representations,  not  only  of  the  merciless 
treatment  which  we  must  expect  from  the  Indians,  should 
they  regain  their  superiority,  but  of  the  little  dependence  which 
was  to  be  placed  upon  our  Canadian  auxiliaries.  Thus  the 
fort  and  prisoners  remained  in  the  hands  of  the  Indians,  though, 
through  the  whole  niglit,  the  prisoners  and  whites  were  in 
actual  possession,  and  they  were  without  the  gates. 

"  That  whole  night,  or  the  greater  part  of  it,  was  passed 
in  mutual  condolence ;  and  my  fellow-prisoners  shared  my 
garret.  In  the  morning,  being  again  called  down,  I  found  my 
master,  Wenniway,  and  was  desired  to  follow  him.  He  led 
me  to  a  small  house  within  the  fort,  where,  in  a  narrow  room, 
and  almost  dark,  I  found  Mr.  Ezekiel  Solomons,  an  English- 
man from  Detroit,  and  a  soldier,  all  prisoners.     With  these,  1 


7° 


OLD   AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


remained  in  painful  suspense  as  to  the  scene  that  was  next  to 
present  itself,  till  ten  o'clock  in  the  forenoon,  when  an  Indian 
arrived,  and  presently  marched  lis  to  the  lake-side,  where  a 
canoe  appeared  ready  for  departure,  and  in  which  we  found 
that  we  were  to  embark. 

"  Our  voyage,  full  of  doubt  as  it  was,  would  have  ct<m- 
menced  immediately,  but  that  one  of  the  Indians,  who  was  to 
be  of  the  party,  was  absent.  His  arrival  was  to  be  waited  for, 
and  this  occasioned  a  very  long  delay,  during  which  we  were 
exposed  to  a  keen  north-east  wind.  An  old  shirt  was  all  that 
covered  me.  I  suffered  much  from  the  cold,  and  in  this  ex- 
tremity, M.  Langlade  coming  down  to  the  beach,  I  asked  him 
for  a  blanket,  promising,  if  I  lived,  to  pay  him  for  it,  at  any 
price  he  pleased  ;  but  the  answer  I  received  was  this,  that  he 
could  let  me  have  no  blanket,  unless  there  were  some  one  to 
be  security  for  the  payment.  For  myself,  he  observed,  I  had 
no  longer  any  property  in  that  country.  I  had  no  more  to  say 
to  M.  Langlade ;  but,  presently  seeing  another  Canadian, 
named  John  Cuchoise,  I  addressed  him  a  similar  request  and 
was  not  refused.  Naked  as  I  was,  and  rigorous  as  w^as  the 
weather,  but  for  the  blanket  I  must  have  perished.  At  noon 
our  party  was  all  collected,  the  prisoners  all  embarked,  and  we 
steered  for  the  Isles  du  Castor,  in  Lake  Michigan. 

"  The  soldier,  who  was  our  companion  in  misfortune,  was 
made  fast  to  a  bar  of  the  canoe,  by  a  rope  tied  around  his 
neck,  as  is  the  manner  of  the  Indians,  in  transporting  their 
prisoners.  The  rest  were  left  unconfined  ;  but  a  paddle  was 
put  into  each  of  our  hands,  and  we  were  made  to  use  it.  The 
Indians  in  the  canoe  were  seven  in  number  ;  the  prisoners  four. 
I  had  left,  as  it  will  be  recollected,  Maj.  Etherington,  Lieut. 
Lesslie,  and  Mr.  Bostwick,  at  M.  Langlade's,  and  was  now 
joined  in  misery  with  Mr.  Ezckicl  Solomons,  the  soldier,  and 
the  Englishman,  who  had  newly  arrived  from  Detroit.  This 
was  on  the  sixth  day  of  June.  The  fort  was  taken  on  the 
fourth  ;  I  surrendered  myself  to  Wenniway  on  the  fifth  ;  and 
this  was  the  third  day  of  our  distress. 


MASSACRE   AT   FORT   MACKINAC. 


71 


"  We  were  bound,  as  I  have  said,  for  the  Isles  du  Castor, 
which  lie  in  the  nT^'th  of  Lake  Michigan ;  and  we  should 
have  crossed  the  lake,  but  that  a  thick  fog  came  on,  on  account 
of  which  the  Indians  deemed  it  safer  to  keep  the  shore  close 
under  their  lee.  We  therefore  approached  the  lands  of  the 
'  Ottawas,  and  their  village  of  L'Arbre  Croche,  already  men- 
tioned as  lying  about  twenty  miles  to  the  westward  of  Michili- 
mackinac,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  tongue  of  land  on  which 
the  fort  is  built. 

"  Every  half  hour  the  Indians  gave  their  war-whoops,  one 
for  every  prisoner  in  their  canoe.  This  is  a  general  custom, 
by  the  aid  of  which  all  the  Indians  within  hearing  are  ap- 
prized of  the  number  of  prisoners  they  are  carrying.  In  this 
manner  we  reached  Wagoshense,  (Fox  Point,)  a  long  point, 
stretching  westward  into  the  lake,  and  which  the  Ottawas 
make  a  carrying-place,  to  avoid  going  round  it.  It  is  distant 
eighteen  miles  from  Michilimackinac.  After  the  Indians  had 
made  their  war-whoop,  as  before,  an  Ottawa  appeared  upon 
the  beach,  who  made  signs  that  we  should  land.  In  conse- 
quence, we  approached.  The  Ottawa  asked  the  news,  and 
kept  the  Chippewas  in  further  conversation,  till  we  were  within 
a  few  yards  of  the  land,  and  in  shallow  water.  At  this  iro- 
ment,  a  hundred  men  rushed  upon  us,  from  among  the  bushes, 
and  dragged  all  the  prisoners  out  of  the  canoes,  amid  a  terrify- 
ing shout. 

"  We  now  believed  that  our  last  suflerings  were  approach- 
ing ;  but  no  sooner  were  we  fairly  on  shore,  and  on  our  legs, 
than  the  chiefs  of  the  party  advanced  and  gave  each  of  us  their 
hands,  telling  us  that  they  were  our  friends,  and  Ottawas  whom 
the  Chippewas  had  insulted  by  destroying  the  English  without 
consulting  with  them  on  the  aftair.  They  added  that  what 
they  had  done  was  for  the  purpose  of  saving  our  lives,  the 
Chippewas  having  been  carrying  us  to  the  Isles  du  Castor  only 
to  kill  and  dcvoui  us. 

"  The  reader's  imagination  i3  here  distracted  by  the  variety 
of  our  fortunes,  and  he  may  well  paint  to  himself  the  state  of 


7» 


OLD   AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


mind  of  those  who  sustained  them  ;  who  were  the  sport,  or  the 
victims,  of  a  series  of  events  more  Hkc  dreams  than  rcahties — 
more  Hke  fiction  than  truth  !  It  was  not  long  before  we  were 
embarked  again,  in  the  canoes  of  the  Ottawas,  who,  the  same 
evening,  re-landed  us  at  MichiHmackinac,  where  they  marclied 
us  into  the  fort,  in  view  of  the  Chippewas,  confounded  at 
beholding  the  Ottawas  espouse  a  side  opposite  to  their  own. 
The  Ottawas,  who  had  accompanied  us  in  sufficient  numbers, 
took  possession  of  the  fort.  We,  who  had  changed  masters, 
but  were  still  prisone  s,  were  'odged  in  the  house  of  the  com- 
mandant, and  strictly  guarded. 

"  Early  the  next  morning,  a  general  council  was  held,  m 
which  the  Chippewas  complai.ied  much  of  the  conduct  of  the 
Ottawas,  in  robbing  them  of  tlieir  prisoners ;  alleging  that  all 
the  Indians,  the  Ottawas  alone  excepted,  were  at  war  with  the 
English  ;  that  Fontiac  had  taken  Detroit ;  that  the  king  of 
France  had  awoke  and  repossessed  himself  of  Qiiebec  and 
Montreal,  and  that  the  English  were  meeting  destruction,  not 
only  at  Michilimackinac,  but  in  every  other  part  of  the  world. 
From  all  this  they  inferred  that  it  became  .lie  Ottawas  to  re- 
store the  prisoners  and  to  join  in  the  war  ;  and  the  speech  was 
followed  *by  large  presents,  being  jjart  of  the  plunder  of  the 
fort,  and  which  was  previously  heaped  in  the  center  of  the 
room.  The  Indians  rarely  make  their  answers  till  the  day 
aficr  they  have  heard  t'^'e  arguments  offered.  They  did  not 
depart  from  their  custom  on  this  occasion ;  and  the  council 
therefore  adjourned. 

"  We,  the  prisoners  whose  fate  was  thus  in  controversy, 
were  unacquainted,  it  the  time,  with  this  transaction  ;  and 
therefore  enjoyed  a  nigiit  of  tolerable  tranquility,  not  in  the 
least  suspecting  the  reverse  which  was  preparing  for  us. 
Which  of  the  arguments  of  the  Chippewas,  or  whether  or  not 
all  were  deemed  valid  by  the  Ottawas,  I  cannot  say,  but  the 
council  was  resiuncd  at  an  early  hour  in  the  morning,  and, 
after  several  speeches  had  been  made  in  it,  the  prisoners  were 
sent  for,  and  returned  to  the  Chippewas. 


MASSACIIE   AT    FORT    MACKINAC. 


73 


"  The  Ottawas,  who  now  gave  us  into  the  hands  of  the 
Chippewas,  had  themselves  dechired  that  the  latter  designed 
no  other  than  to  kill  us,  and  i7iakc  broth  of  us.  The  Chipjie- 
was,  as  soon  as  we  were  restored  to  them,  marched  us  to  a 
village  of  their  own  situate  on  the  point  which  is  below  the 
fort,  and  put  us  into  a  lodge,  already  the  jDrison  of  fourteen 
soldiers,  tied  two  and  two,  with  each  a  rope  about  his  neck, 
and  made  fast  to  a  pole  which  might  be  called  the  supporter  of 
the  building. 

"  I  was  left  unti(;d  ;  but  I  passed  a  night  sleepless  and  full 
of  wretchedness.  My  bed  was  the  bare  ground,  and  I  was 
again  reduced  to  an  old  shirt,  as  my  entire  apparel ;  the 
blanket  which  I  had  received,  through  the  generosity  of  M. 
Cuchoise,  having  been  taken  from  me  among  the  Ottawas, 
when  they  seized  upon  myself  and  the  others,  at  Wagoshense. 
I  was,  besides,  in  want  of  food,  having  for  two  days  eaten 
nothing.  I  confess  that  in  the  canoe,  with  the  Chippewas,  I 
was  offered  l)read — but  bread,  with  what  accompaniment ! 
They  had  a  loaf,  which  they  cut  with  the  same  knives  that  they 
had  employed  in  the  massacre — knives  still  covered  with  blood. 
The  blood  they  moistened  with  spittle,  and  rubbing  it  on  the 
bread,  oO'ered  this  for  food  to  their  prisoners,  telling  them  to 
eat  the  blood  of  their  countrymen. 

"  Such  was  my  situation,  on  the  morning  of  the  seventh 
of  June,  in  the  year  one  thousand  seven  hundred  and  sixty- 
tliree ;  but  a  few  hours  produced  an  event  which  gave  still  a 
new  color  to  my  lot.  Toward  noon,  when  the  great  war-chief, 
in  company  with  Wenniway,  was  seated  at  the  opposite  end  of 
the  lodge,  my  friend  and  brother,  Wawatam,  suddenly  came 
in.  During  the  four  days  preceding,  I  had  often  wondered 
what  had  become  of  him.  In  passing  by,  he  gawe  me  his 
hand,  but  went  immediately  toward  the  great  chief,  by  the  side 
of  whom  and  Wenniway  he  sat  himself  down.  The  most 
uninterrupted  silence  prevailed ;  each  smoked  his  pipe  ;  and 
this  done,  Wawatam  aiose  and  left  the  lodge,  saying  to  me,  as 
he  passed,  '  Take  courage.'  •  . 


74 


OLD    AND    NEW   MACKINAC. 


"  An  hour  elapsed,  during  which  several  chiefs  entered, 
and  preparations  appeared  to  be  making  for  a  council.  At 
lengtii,  Wawatam  reentered  the  lodge,  followed  by  his  wife, 
and  both  loaded  with  merchandise,  which  they  carried  up  to 
the  chiefs,  and  laid  in  a  heap  before  them.  Some  moments  of 
silence  followed,  at  the  end  of  which  Wawatam  pronounced  a 
speech,  every  word  of  which,  to  me,  was  of  extraordinary 
interest. 

"  '  Friends  and  relations,'  he  began,  '  what  is  it  that  I 
shall  say.^  You  know  what  I  feel.  You  all  have  friends,  and 
brothers,  and  children,  whom  as  yourselves  you  love  ;  and  you 
— what  would  you  experience,  did  you  like  me  behold  your 
dearest  friend,  your  brother,  in  the  condition  of  a  slave ;  a 
slave,  exposed  every  moment  to  insult,  and  to  menaces  of 
death?  This  case,  as  you  all  know,  is  mine.  See  there  (point- 
ing to  myself)  my  friend  and  brother  among  slaves — himself  a 
slave ! 

"  '  You  all  well  know,  that  long  before  the  war  began,  I 
adopted  him  as  my  brother.  From  that  moment,  he  became 
one  of  my  family,  so  that  no  change  of  circumstances  could 
break  the  cord  which  fastened  us  together.  He  is  my  brother  ; 
and  because  I  am  your  relation,  he  is  therefore  your  relation 
too  ; — and  how,  being  your  relation,  can  he  be  your  slave .'' 

"  '  On  the  day  on  which  the  war  began,  you  Avere  fearful, 
lest,  on  this  very  account,  I  should  reveal  your  secret.  You 
requested,  therefore,  that  I  would  leave  the  fort,  and  even  cross 
the  lake.  I  did  so  ;  but  I  did  it  with  reluctance.  I  did  it  with 
reluctance,  notwithstanding  that  you,  Menehwehna,  (Alinava- 
vana,')  who  had  the  command  in  this  enterprise,  gave  me  your 
promise  that  you  would  protect  my  friend,  delivering  him  from 
all  danger,  and  giving  him  safely  to  me.  The  performance  of 
this  promise  I  now  claim.  I  come  not  with  empty  hands  to 
ask  it.  You,  Menehwehna,  best  know  whether  or  not,  as  it 
respects  yourself,  you  have  kept  your  word,  but  I  bring  these 
goods  to  buy  olV  every  claim  which  any  man  among  you  all 
may  have  on  my  brother,  as  his  prisoner.' 


MASSACRE   AT   FORT    MACKINAC. 


75 


"  Wavvatam  having  ceased,  the  pipes  were  again  filled ; 
and,  after  they  were  finished,  a  further  period  of  silence  fol- 
lowed. At  the  end  of  this,  Menehwehna  arose  and  gave  his 
reply : 

'' '  My  relation  and  brother,'  said  he,  '  what  you  have 
spoken  is  the  truth.  We  were  acquainted  with  the  friendship 
which  subsisted  between  yourself  and  the  Englishman,  in 
whose  behalf  vou  have  now  addressed  us.  We  knew  the  dan- 
ger  of  having  our  secret  discovered,  and  the  consequences 
which  must  follow  ;  and  you  say  truly,  that  we  requested  you, 
to  leave  the  fort.  This  we  did,  out  of  regard  for  you  and  your 
family ;  for,  if  a  discovery  of  our  design  had  been  made,  you 
would  have  been  blamed,  whether  guilty  or  not ;  and  you 
would  Ihus  have  been  involved  in  difficulties  from  which  you 
could  not  have  extricated  yourself. 

"  '  It  is  also  true,  that  I  promised  you  to  take  care  of  your 
friend  ;  and  this  promise  I  performed  by  desiring  my  son,  at 
the  moment  of  assault,  to  seek  him  out  and  bring  him  to  my 
lodge.  He  went  accordingly^  but  could  not  find  him.  The 
day  after,  I  sert  him  to  Langlade's,  when  he  was  informed  that 
your  friend  was  safe  ;  and  had  it  not  been  that  the  Indians  were 
then  drinking  the  rum  which  had  been  found  in  the  fort,  he 
would  have  brought  him  home  with  him,  according  to  my  or- 
ders. I  am  very  glad  to  find  that  your  friend  has  escaped. 
We  accept  your  present ;  and  you  may  take  him  home  with 
you.' 

''  Wawatam  thanked  the  assembled  chiefs,  and  taking  me 
by  the  hand,  led  me  to  his  lodge,  which  was  at  the  distance  of 
a  few  yards  only  from  the  prison-lodge.  Aly  entrance  appeared 
to  give  joy  to  the  whole  family ;  food  was  immediately  pre- 
pared for  me,  and  I  pow  ate  the  first  hearty  meal  which  I  had 
made  since  my  capture.  I  found  myself  one  of  the  family ; 
and  but  that  I  bad  still  my  fears  as  to  the  other  Indians,  I  felt 
as  happy  as  the  situation  could  allow. 

"  In.  the  course  of  the  next  morning,  I  was  alarmed  by  a 
noise  in  the  prison-lodge  ;  and  looking  through  the  openings  of 


76 


OLD   AND    NEW  MACKINAC. 


mt 


m 


the  lodge  in  which  I  was,  I  saw  seven  dead  bodies  of  white 
men  dragged  forth.  Upon  my  inquiry  into  the  occasion,  I  was 
informed  that  a  certain  chief,  called,  by  the  Canadians,  Le 
Grand  Sable,  had  not  long  before  arrived  from  his  winter's 
hunt;  and  that  he,  having  been  absent  when  the  war  began, 
and  being  now  desirous  of  manifesting  to  the  Indians  at  large 
his  hearty  concurrence  in  what  they  had  done,  had  gone  into 
the  prison-lodge,  and  there,  with  his  knife,  put  the  seven  men, 
whose  bodies  I  had  seen,  to  death. 

"  Shortly  after,  two  of  the  Indians  took  one  of  the  dead 
bodies,  which  they  chose  as  being  the  fattest,  cut  off  the  head, 
and  divid,cd  the  whole  into  five  parts,  one  of  which  was  put 
into  each  of  five  kettles,  hung  over  as  many  fires,  kindled  for 
this  purpose  at  the  door  of  the  prison-lodge.  Soon  after  things 
were  so  far  prepared,  a  message  came  to  our  lodge,  with  an  in- 
vitation to  Wawatam  to  assist  at  the  feast. 

"  An  invitation  to  a  feast  is  given  by  him  who  is  the 
master  of  it.  Small  cuttings  of  cedar-wood,  of  about  four 
inches  in  length,  supply  the  place  of  cards ;  and  the  bearer,  by 
word  of  mouth,  states  the  particulars.  Wawatam  obeyed  the 
summons,  taking  with  him,  as  is  usual,  to  the  place  of  enter- 
tainment, his  dish  and  spoon.  After  an  absence  of  about  half 
an  hoiu',  he  returned,  oringing  in  his  dish  a  human  hand  and  a 
large  piece  of  flesh.  He  did  not  appear  to  relish  the  repast, 
but  told  me  that  it  was  then,  and  always  had  been  the  custom, 
among  all  the  Indian  nations,  when  returning  from  war,  or  on 
overcoming  their  enemies,  to  make  a  war-feast,  from  among 
the  slain.  This,  he  said,  inspired  the  warrior  with  courage 
in  attack,  and  bred  him  to  meet  death  with  fearlessness, 

"  In  the  evening  of  the  same  day  a  large  canoe,  such  as 
those  which  come  from  Montreal,  was  se^n  advancing  to  the 
fort.  It  was  full  of  men,  and  I  distinguished  several  passen- 
gers. The  Indian  cry  was  made  in  the  village  ;  a  general 
muster  ordered ;  and,  to  the  number  of  two  hundred,  they 
marched  up  to  the  fort,  where  the  canoe  was  expected  to  land. 
The  canoe,  suspecting  nothing,  came  boldly  to  the  fort,  where 


the 
thr 
lod 

Inc 
wh 
wi( 
doA 
abc 
poj 
we 
the 
Ott 
wh 
tho 


MASSACRE   AT    FORT    MACKINAC. 


77 


the  passengers,  as  being  English  traders,  were  seized,  dragged 
through  tlie  water,  beaten,  reviled,  marclied  to  the  pii,->on- 
lodge,  and  there  stripped  of  their  clothes  and  confined. 

"  Of  the  English  traders  tliat  fell  into  the  han(L  of  the 
Indians,  at  the  capture  of  the  fort,  Mr.  Tracy  wa  the  only  one 
who  lost  his  life.  Mr.  Ezekiel  Solomons  and  Air.  Henry  Rost- 
wick  were  taken  by  the  Ottawas,  and,  after  the  peace,  carried 
down  to  Montrciri,  and  there  ransomed.  Of  ninety  troops, 
about  seventy  were  killed  ;  the  rest,  together  with  those  of  the 
posts  in  the  Bay  des  Puants,  and  at  the  river  Saint  Joseph, 
were  also  kept  in  safety  by  the  Ottawas,  till  the  peace,  and 
then  either  freely  restored,  or  ransomed  at  Montreal.  'J  iie 
Ottawas  never  overcame  their  disgust  at  the  neglect  with 
which  they  had  been  treated,  in  the  beginning  of  the  war,  by 
those  who  afterward  desired  their  assistance  as  allies." 


/S 


OLD    AXn    NEW    MACKINAC. 


CHAPTER  V. 


ESCAPK    OF    JIEXUV    AND   OTHERS. 

The  peculiarities  of  the  Indian  character  will  readily 
exiilain  to  us  the  part  which  the  Ottawas  played  in  this  transac- 
tion. They  deemed  it  a  gross  insult  that  the  Ojibwas  had 
undertaken  an  enterprise  of  such  vast  importance  without  con- 
sulting them  or  asking  their  assistance.  They  had,  therefore,  res- 
cued Henry  and  his  companions  in  tribulation  from  the  hands 
of  their  captors  and  borne  them  back  to  the  fort,  where  they 
h.nd,  to  the  dismay  of  the  Ojibwas,  taken  possession  not  only 
of  the  fort,  but  of  the  other  prisoners  also.  This,  however,  was 
purely  out  of  revenge  to  the  Ojibwas,  and  not  from  any  good 
will  towards  the  prisoners.  After  the  council  of  which  Henry 
has  told  us,  some  of  the  prisoners,  among  whom  was  Henry, 
were  given  up,  but  the  oOicers  and  several  of  the  soldiers  were 
retained  and  carried  b}-  the  Ottawas  to  L'Arbre  Croche.  Here, 
owing  probably  to  the  influence  of  Father  Janois,  they  were 
treated  with  kindness.  From  this  point  Ethrington  despatched 
two  letters,  one  by  Janois  to  Major  Gladwyn,  at  Detroit,  and 
the  other  by  an  Ottawa  Indian  to  Lieutenant  Gorcll,  at  Green 
Bay.  Both  of  these  letters  contained  a  brief  account  of  the 
massacre,  and  an  earnest  entreaty  for  assistance.  The  one  ad- 
dressed to  Gorell  was  as  ibllows  : 

"  MiciiiLiMACKiNAc,  June  ii,  1763. 

"  Dear  Sir  :  Tliis  place  was  taken  by  surj^rise  on  the 

fourth   instant  by  the  Chippewas,   (Ojibwas,)   at  which  time 

Lieutenant  Jamctte  and  twenty  men  were  killed,  and  all  the  rest 

taken  prisoners  ;  but  our  good  friends  the  Ottawas  have  taken 


ESCAPE   OF   HENRY   AND   OTHEHS. 


79 


Lieutenant  Leslie,  inc,  and  eleven  men  out  of  their  hands,  and 
have  promised  to  reinstate  us  again.  You'll  thcrcH^rc,  on  the 
receipt  of  this,  which  I  send  by  a  canoe  of  Ottawas,  set  out 
with  all  30ur  garrison,  and  what  English  traders  you  have  with 
you,  and  come  with  tiic  Indian  who  gives  you  this,  who  will 
conduct  you  safe  to  me.  You  must  be  sure  to  follow  the  in- 
struction you  receive  froin  the  bearer  of  this,  as  you  are  by  no 
means  to  come  to  this  post  before  you  see  me  at  the  village, 
twenty  miles  from  this.  »  *  *  I  must  once  more  beg  you'll 
lose  no  time  in  coming  to  join  mc  ;  at  the  same  time  be  very 
careful,  and  always  be  on  your  guard.  I  long  much  to  see  you, 
and  am,  dear  sir,  your  most  humble  servant, 

"  Gko.  Ethrington. 
"J.  GoRELL,  Royal  Americans." 

When  Father  Janois  i-eached  Detroit  he  found  the  place 
closely  besieged,  and  consequently  r.'^  assistance  could  come 
from  that  quarter,  but  at  Green  Bay  the  case  was  otherwise. 
With  seventeen  men  Lieutenant  Gorell  had  taken  i^ossession  of 
that  post  in  1761,  and,  by  a  system  of  good  management,  had 
succeeded  in  allaying  the  hostility  of  the  savages  and  securing 
the  friendship  of  at  least  a  part  of  the  tribes  around  him.  On 
receiving  Etnrington's  letter  Gorell  told  the  Indians  what  the 
Ojibwas  had  done,  and  that  he  and  his  soldiers  were  going  to 
Michilimackinac  to  restore  order,  adding  that,  during  his  ab- 
sence, he  commended  the  fort  to  their  care.  Presents  were  dis- 
tributed among  them,  and  advantage  taken  of  every  circum- 
stance that  could  possibly  be  made  to  favor  the  English  cause, 
so  that  when  the  party  was  ready  to  embark  ninety  warriors 
proposed  to  escort  the  garrison  on  its  way. 

Arriving  at  L'Arbre  Croche,  where  Captain  Ethrington, 
Lieutenant  Leslie,  and  eleven  men  were  yet  detained  as  pris- 
oners, Gorell  received  an  intimation  that  tlic  Ottawas  intended 
to  disarm  his  own  n)cn  also,  but  he  promptly  informed  them 
that  such  an  attempt  would  meet  with  a  vigorous  resistance 
and  the  Indians  desisted.      Several  days  were  now  spent  in  hold- 


8o 


OLD   AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


ing  councils.  The  Indians  front  Green  Bay  requested  the  Ot- 
tawas  to  set  their  prisoners  at  liberty,  to  which  the  latter  at 
length  assented.  Thinking  only  of  how  they  might  escai/e  the 
presence  of  their  troublesome  and  treacherous  foes,  they  prepared 
to  depart.  One  difficulty,  however,  yet  remained.  The  Ojib- 
was  had  declared  that  they  would  prevent  the  English  from 
passing  down  to  Montreal,  and  again  they  had  recourse  to  a 
council.  A  reversion  of  feeling,  as  we  shall  soon  see,  had 
already  taken  place  among  the  Ojibwa  chiefs,  and  at  length, 
though  reluctantly,  they  yielded  the  point.  On  the  eighteenth 
day  of  July,  escorted  by  a  fleet  of  Indian  canoes,  the  English 
left  L'Arbre  Croche,  and  on  the  thirteenth  day  of  August  all 
arrived  in  safety  at  Montreal,  leaving  not  a  British  soldier  in  the 
region  of  the  lakes,  except  at  Detroit. 

Let  us  now  go  back,  in  point  of  time,  and  hear  our  old 
friend  llenry  to  the  end  of  his  story. 

"  In  the  morning  of  the  ninth  of  June,  a  general  council 
was  held,  at  which  it  was  agreed  to  remove  to  the  island  of 
Michilimackinac,  as  a  more  defensible  situation  in  the  event  of 
an  attack  by  the  English.  The  Indians  had  begun  to  entertain 
apprehensions  of  a  want  of  strength.  No  news  had  reached 
them  from  the  Potawatamies,  in  the  Bay  des  Puants,  and  they 
were  uncertain  whether  or  not  the  Monomins  would  join  them. 
They  even  feared  that  the  Sioux  would  take  the  English  side. 
This  resolution  fixed,  they  prepared  for  a  speedy  retreat.  At 
noon  the  camp  was  broken  up  and  we  embarked,  taking  with 
us  the  prisoners  that  were  still  undisposed  of.  On  our  passage 
we  encountered  a  gale  of  wind,  and  there  were  some  appear- 
ances of  danger.  To  avert  a  dog,  of  which  the  legs  were 
previously  tied  together,  was  thrown  into  the  lake — an  ofl'ering 
designed  to  soothe  the  angry  passions  of  some  offended  Manito. 

"  As  we  approached  tlie  island  two  women  in  the  canoe 
in  which  I  was  began  to  utter  melancholy  and  liideous  cries. 
Precarious  as  my  condition  still  remained,  I  e-  ,i  ,rienced  some 
sensations  of  alarm  from  these  dismal  sounds,  of  which  I  could 


ESCAPE    OF    IIENUY    A^•D    OTHERS. 


Si 


not  then  discover  the  occasion.  Subsequently  I  learned  that  it 
is  customary  for  the  women,  on  passing  near  the  burial-places 
of  relations,  never  to  omit  the  practice  of  which  I  was  now  a 
witness,  and  by  which  they  intend  to  d.-note  their  grief. 

"  By  the  approach  of  evening  we  reached  the  island  in 
safety,  and  the  women  were  not  long  in  erecting  our  cabins. 
In  the  morning  there  was  a  muster  of  the  Indians,  at  which 
there  were  found  three  hundred  and  fifty  fv^VSng  men.  In  the 
course  of  the  day  there  arrived  a  canoe  fruin  Detroit,  with  am- 
bassadors, who  endeavored  to  prevail  on  the  Indians  to  repair 
thither,  to  the  assistance  of  Pontiac,  but  fear  was  now  the  pre- 
vailing passion.  A  guard  was  kept  during  the  day  and  a 
watch  by  night,  and  alarms  were  very  frequently  spread.  Had 
an  enemy  appeared  all  the  prisoners  woidd  have  been  put  to 
death,  and  I  suspected  that,  as  an  Englishman.  I  should  share 
their  fate. 

"  Several  days  had  now  passed  when,  one  morning,  a  con- 
tinue alarm  prev/Jled,  and  I  saw  the  Indians  running  in  a  con- 
fused manner  towards  the  beach.  In  a  short  time  I  learned 
that  two  1  'rge  canoes  from  Montreal  were  in  sight. 

'•  All  the  Indian  canoes  were  immediately  manned,  and 
those  from  Montreal  were  surrounded  and  seized  as  thev  turned 
a  point,  behind  which  the  flotilla  had  been  concealed.  The 
goods  were  consigned  to  a  Mr.  Levy,  and  would  have  been 
saved  if  the  canoe-men  had  called  tliem  French  property,  but 
they  were  terrified  and  disguised  nothing. 

"  In  the  canoes  was  a  large  proportion  of  liquor — a  dan- 
gerous acquisition,  and  one  which  threatened  disturbance  among 
the  Indians,  even  to  the  loss  of  their  dearest  friends.  Wawa- 
tam,  always  watchful  of  my  safety,  no  sooner  heard  the  noise 
of  drunkenness  which,  in  the  evening,  did  not  fail  to  begin, 
than  lie  represented  to  me  the  danger  of  remaining  in  the  vil- 
lage, and  owned  that  he  could  not  himself  resist  the  temptation 
of  joining  his  comrades  in  the  debauch.  That  I  might  escape 
all  mischief,  he  therefore  requested  that  I  would  accompany 
him  to  the  mountain,  where  I  was  to  remain  hidden  till  the 


82 


OLD   AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


liquor  should  be  drank.  We  ascended  the  mountain  accord- 
ingly. After  walking  more  than  half  a  mile  we  came  to  a 
large  rock,  at  the  base  of  which  was  an  opening,  dark  within, 
and  appearing  to  be  the  entrance  of  a  cave.  Here  Wa\\'atam 
recommended  that  I  should  take  up  my  lodging,  and  by  all 
means  remain  till  he  returned. 

"  On  going  into  the  cave,  of  which  the  entrance  was  nearly 
ten  feet  wide,  I  found  the  further  end  to  be  rounded  in  its  shape, 
like  that  of  an  oven,  but  with  a  fui-ther  aperture,  too  small, 
however,  to  be  explored.  After  thus  looking  around  me,  I 
broke  small  branches  from  the  trees  and  spread  them  for  a  bed, 
then  wrapped  myself  in  my  blanket  and  slept  till  da3'-break. 
On  awaking  I  felt  myself  incommoded  by  some  object  upon 
which  I  lay,  and  removing  it,  found  it  to  be  a  bone.  This  I 
supposed  to  be  that  of  a  deer,  or  some  other  animal,  and  what 
might  very  naturally  be  looked  for  in  the  place  in  which  I  was  ; 
but  when  daylight  visited  my  chamber  I  discovered,  with  some 
feelings  of  horror,  that  I  was  lying  on  nothing  less  than  a  heap 
of  human  bones  and  skulls,  which  covered  all  the  floor  ! 

"  The  day  passed  without  the  return  of  Wawatam,  and 
without  food.  As  night  approached  T  found  myself  unable  to 
meet  its  darkness  in  the  charnel  house,  which,  nevertheless,  I 
had  viewed  free  from  uneasiness  during  the  day.  I  chose, 
therefore,  an  adjacent  bush  for  this  night's  lodging,  and  slept 
under  it  as  before ;  but  in  the  morning  I  awoke  hungry  and 
dispirited,  and  almost  envying  the  dry  bones,  to  the  view  of 
which  I  returned.  At  length  the  sound  of  a  foot  reached  me, 
and  my  Indian  friend  appeared,  making  many  apologies  for  his 
long  absence,  the  cause  of  which  was  an  unfortunate  excess  in 
the  enjoyment  of  his  liquor. 

"  This  point  being  explained,  I  mentioned  the  extraor- 
dinary sight  that  had  presented  itself,  in  the  cave  to  which 
he  had  commended  my  slumbers.  lie  had  never  heard  of  its 
existence  before,  and  upon  examining  the  ca\  j  together  we  saw 
reason  to  believe  that  it  had  been  anciently  filled  with  human 
bodies. 


ESCAPE    OF   HENRY    AND    OTHERS. 


83 


"  On  returning  to  the  lodge  I  experienced  a  cordial  recep- 
tion from  the  family,  which  consisted  of  the  wife  of  my  friend, 
his  two  sons,  of  whom  the  eldest  was  married,  and  whose  wife, 
and  a  daughter  of  thirteen  years  of  age,  completed  the  list. 

"  Wawatam  related  to  the  other  Indians  the  adventure  of 
the  bones.  All  of  them  expressed  surprise  at  hearing  it,  and 
declared  that  they  had  never  been  aware  of  the  contents  of  this 
cave  before.  After  visiting  it,  which  they  immediately  did, 
almost  ev'ery  one  ottered  a  did'erent  opinion  as  to  its  histoiy. 
Some  advanced  that  at  a  period  when  the  waters  overflowed 
the  land,  (an  event  which  makes  a  distinguished  figure  in  the 
history  of  their  world,)  the  inhabitants  of  this  island  had  fled 
into  the  cave,  and  been  there  drowned  ;  others,  that  those  same 
inhabitants,  when  the  Hurons  made  war  upon  them,  (as  tradi- 
tion says  they  did,)  hid  themselves  in  the  cave,  and,  being  dis- 
covered, were  there  massacred.  For  myself,  I  am  disposed  to 
believe  that  this  cave  was  an  ancient  receptacle  of  the  bones  of 
prisoners  sacrificed  and  devoured  at  war  feasts.  I  have  always 
observed  that  the  Indians  pay  particular  attention  to  the  bones 
of  sacrifices,  preserving  them  unbroken  and  depositing  them 
in  some  place  kept  exclusively  for  that  purpose. 

"  A  few  days  after  this  occurrence  Menehvvehna  (Minava- 
vana,)  whom  I  now  found  to  be  the  great  chief  of  the  village 
of  ISIichilimackinac,  came  to  the  lodge  of  my  friend,  and  when 
the  usual  ceremony  of  smoking  was  finished  he  observed  that 
Indians  were  now  daily  arriving  from  Detroit,  some  of  whom 
bad  lost  relations  or  friends  in  the  war,  and  who  would  cer- 
tainly retaliate  on  any  Englishman  they  found,  upon  which 
account  his  errand  was  to  advise  that  I  should  be  dressed  like 
an  Indian,  an  expedient  whence  I  might  hope  to  escape  all  fu- 
ture insult. 

"  I  could  not  but  consent  to  the  proposal,  and  the  chief  was 
so  kind  as  to  assist  my  friend  and  his  family  in  eflecting  that 
very  day  the  desired  metamorphosis.  IVIy  hair  was  cut  ofl",  and 
my  head  shaved,  with  the  exception  of  a  spot  on  the  crown  of 
about  twice  the  diameter  of  a  crown  piece.    My  face  was  painted 


f 


84 


OLD   AND    NKW    MACKINAC. 


with  three  or  four  dilTercnt  colors,  some  parts  of  it  red,  and 
others  hhick.  A  shh't  was  provided  for  me,  painted  witli  ver- 
miUion  mixed  v/itli  grease.  A  large  collar  of  wampnnj  was 
put  round  my  neck,  and  another  suspended  on  my  breast. 
Both  my  arms  were  decorated  with  large  bands  of  silver  above 
the  elbow,  besides  several  smaller  ones  on  tlie  wrists  ;  and  my 
legs  were  covered  with  mlfasses,  a  kind  of  hose,  matie,  as  is 
the  favorite  fashion,  of  scarlet  cloth.  Over  all  I  was  to  wear  a 
scarlet  mantle  or  blanket,  and  on  my  head  a  large  bunch  of 
feathers.  I  parted,  not  vvdthout  some  regret,  with  the  long  liair 
which  was  nattn"al  to  it,  and  which  I  fancied  to  be  ornamental ; 
but  the  ladies  of  the  family  and  of  the  village  irj  general  ap- 
peared to  think  my  person  improved,  and  now  condescended 
to  caU  me  handsome,  even  among  Indians. 

"  Protected  in  a  great  measure  l)v  tliis  disguise,  I  felt  my- 
self more  at  liberty  than  before,  and  the  season  being  arrived  in 
which  my  clerks  from  the  interior  were  to  be  expected,  and 
some  part  of  my  property,  as  I  had  a  right  to  hope,  recovered,  I 
begged  the  favor  of  Wawatani  that  lie  would  enal:)le  me  to  pay 
a  short  visit  to  Michilimackinac.  He  did  not  fail  to  couiply, 
and  I  succeeded  in  finding  my  clerks ;  but  either  through  the 
disturbed  state  of  the  country,  as  tii  .  represented  to  be  the 
case,  or  through  their  misconduct,  as  I  had  reason  U>  think,  I 
obtained  nothing;  ant!  nothing,  or  almost  nothing,  I  now  be- 
gan to  think  would  be  all  that  I  should  need  during  the  rest  of 
my  life.  To  tish  and  to  hunt,  to  collect  a  few  skins  and  ex- 
change them  for  necess:rries,  was  all  that  I  seemed  destined  to 
do  and  to  acquire  for  the  future. 

"  1  returned  to  the  Indian  village,  where  at  this  time  much 
j'carcity  of  food  prevailed.  \Wc  were  often  for  twenty-four 
hours  without  eating,  and  when  in  the  morning  we  had  no 
victuals  for  Lhc  day  before  us.  the  custom  was  to  black  our 
faces  with  grease  and  charcoal,  and  exhibit  tln-ough  resignation 
a  temper  as  cheerful  as  if  in  the  midst  of  plenty.  A  repetition 
of  the  evil,  however,  soon  induced  us  to  leave  the  island  in 
seurcli  of  food,  and  accordingly  we  departed  for  the  Bay  of 


for 
on 


kiu( 

nor 

vhc 


ESCAPji  or  nK\n\   and  others. 

85 

Boutchitao 

ny,  distnnl  cioht  leagues,  and  where  we  found 

plenty 

^ 


of  wild  fowl  and  iish." 

Leaviu'r  the  bay  iusl  inenlioned,  Henry,  with  his  friend 
Wawatam  and  family,  came  to  St.  Martin's  Island,  uliere,  in 
the  enjoymer.'c  of  an  excellent  and  plentiful  supply  of  food,  they 
remained  until  the  twenty-sixth  of  August.  "At  this  time," 
continues  the  narratoi',  "'the  autunm  being  at  hand,  and  a  sure 
prospect  of  increased  security  from  hostile  Indians  allbrded, 
Wawatam  proposed  going  to  his  intended  wintering-ground. 
The  removal  was  a  subject  of  the  greatest  joy  to  myself.,  on  ac- 
count of  the  frequent  Insults  to  whicli  I  had  still  to  submit  from 
the  Indians  of  our  band  or  village.,  r.Vid  to  escape  from  which  I 
would  freely  have  gone  almost  anywhere.  At  jur  wintering- 
ground  we  were  to  be  alone,  fov  the  Indian  families  in  the 
countries  of  wbich  I  write  separate  in  the  winter  season  fn*  the 
convenience  as  well  of  3ub.«istcnce  as  of  the  cliase.  and  re-asso- 
ciate in  the  spring  and  summer. 

'•  In  preparation,  our  first  business  was  to  sail  for  ?viichili- 
mackinac,  where,  being  arrived,  we  procured  from  a  Canadian 
trader,  on  credit,  some  tritiing  articles,  together  with  ammuni- 
tion and  (wo  bushels  of  maize.  This  done,  we  steered  directly 
for  Like  MichigJin.  At  L'^Vrbre  Croche  ^ve  stopped  one  day, 
on  a  visit  to  the  Ottawas,  where  all  the  people,  and  particularly 
O'kl'no'chu'ma'ki,  the  chief — tlie  same  who  took  mc  from  the 
Chippewas — behaved  with  great  civility  and  kindness.  The 
chief  presented  me  with  a  bag  of  maixe." 

i'rom  L'.Vri)re  Croche  they  proceeded  directly  to  the 
mouth  of  the  river  Au\  Sables,  which,  Henry  tells  us,  is  "on 
the  souihern  side  of  the  lake,"  and  as  they  huntec'  along  their 
wav.  Henry  enjoyed  a  persona)  freedom  of  which  lie  had  long 
been  deprived,  atid  became  as  expert  in  the  Indian  pursuits  as 
the  Indians  themselves.  The  winter  was  spent  in  the  cliase. 
"  By  degrees,"  says  Henry,  "  I  became  familiarized  with  this 
kind  of  life,  and  had  it  not  been  for  the  idea  of  which  I  could 
not  divest  my  mind,  lliat  I  was  living  among  savages,  and  for 
the  whispers  of  a  lingering  lH)pe  that  I  should  one  day  be  re- 


86 


OLD   AND   NEW   MACKINAC:. 


leased  from  it — or  if  I  could  have  forgotten  that  I  had  ever  been 
otherwise  than  as  I  then  was — I  could  have  enjoyed  as  much 
happiness  in  this  as  in  any  other  situation." 

At  the  approach  of  spring  the  hunters  began  their  prepara- 
tions for  returning  to  Alichilimackimic,  but  their  faces  were  no 
sooner  turned  towards  the  scene  of  the  massixcre  than  all  began 
to  fear  an  attack  from  the  English.  Tlie  cause  of  this  fear^ 
Henry  tells  us,  was  the  constant  dreams  of  the  more  aged  wo- 
men to  that  effect.  Henry  labored,  but  in  vain,  to  allay  their 
fears.  On  the  25th  day  of  April  the  little  party  that  had  col- 
lected upon  the  beach  embarked. 

Henry  writes :  "  At  La  Grande  Traverse  we  met  a  large 
party  of  Indians,  who  appeared  to  labor,  like  ourselves,  under 
considerable  alarm,  and  who  dared  proceed  no  further  lest  they 
should  be  destroyed  by  the  English.  Frequent  councils  of  the 
united  bands  were  held,  and  interrogations  were  continually 
put  to  myself  as  to  whether  or  not  I  knew  of  any  design  to  at- 
tack them.  I  found  that  they  believed  it  possible  for  me  to 
have  a  foreknowledge  of  events,  and  to  be  informed  by  dreams 
of  all  things  doing  at  a  distance. 

"  Protestations  of  my  ignorance  were  received  with  but 
little  satisfaction,  and  incun'ed  the  suspicion  of  a  design  to  con- 
ceal my  knowledge.  On  this  account  therefore,  ch:  because  I 
saw  them  tormented  with  fears  which  had  nothing  but  imagi- 
nation to  rest  upon,  I  told  them  at  length  that  I  knew  tiiere  was 
no  enemy  to  insult  them,  and  that  they  might  proceed  toMichili- 
mackin'ac  without  danger  from  the  English.  I  further,  and 
with  more  confidence,  declared  that  if  ever  my  countrymen  re- 
turned to  Michilimackinac,  I  would  recommend  them  to  their 
favor,  on  account  of  the  good  treatment  which  I  had  received 
from  them.  Thus  encouraged  they  embarked  at  an  early  hour 
the  next  morning.  In  crossing  the  ba^'  we  experienced  a  storm 
of  thunder  and  lightning. 

"  Our  port  was  the  village  of  L';\.rbrc  Croche,  which  we 
reached  in  safety,  and  where  we  staid  till  the  following  day.  At 
this  village  we  found  several  persons  who  had  lately  been  at 


ESCAPE    OF   HENRY   A>;D    OTHERS. 


87 


Michilimackinac,  and  from  them  we  had  tiie  satisfaction  of 
learning  that  all  was  quiet  there.  The  remainder  of  our  voy- 
age was  thercfuru  performed  with  confidence. 

"  In  the  evening  of  the  twenty-seventh  we  landed  at  the 
fort,  which  now  contained  only  two  French  traders.  The  In- 
dians who  had  arrived  liefore  us  were  very  few  in  number,  and 
by  all  who  were  of  our  party  I  was  very  kindly  used.  I  had 
the  entire  freedom  both  of  the  fort  and  camp. 

"  Wawatara  and  myself  settled  our  stock  and  paid  our 
debts,  and  this  done,  I  found  that  my  share  of  what  was  left 
consisted  in  a  hundred  beaver  skins,  sixty  raccoon  skins,  and  six 
otter,  of  the  total  value  of  about  one  hundred  and  sixty  dollars. 
With  these  earnings  of  my  winter's  t<nl  I  proposed  to  purchase 
clothes,  of  which  I  w.i.s  much  in  need,  having  bsen  six  months 
without  a  shirt,  but  on  inquiring  into  the  price;,  of  goods  I 
found  that  all  my  funds  would  not  go  far.  I  was  able,  how- 
ever, to  bu}'  two  shirts,  at  ten  pounds  of  beaver  each  ;  a  pair 
of  leggings^  or  pantaloons,  of  scarlet  cloth,  which,  with  the 
ribbon  to  garnish  ^hcva.  fashionably ^  cost  me  fifteen  pounds,  of 
beaver  ;  a  blanket,  at  twenty  pounds  of  beaver,  and  some  other 
articles  at  proportionable  rates.  In  this  manner  my  wealth 
was  soon  reduced,  but  not  before  I  had  laid  in  a  good  stock  of 
ammunition  and  tobacco.  To  the  use  of  the  latter  I  had  be- 
come much  attached  through  the  winter.  It  was  my  principal 
recreation  after  returning  from  the  chase,  for  my  companions 
in  the  lodge  were  unaccustomed  to  pass  their  time  in  conversa- 
tion. Among  the  Indians  the  topics  of  conve«ation  are  but 
few,  and  limited  for  the  most  part  to  the  transactions  of  the  day, 
the  number  of  animals  which  the\  fetve  killed,  and  of  those 
which  have  escaped  their  pursuit,  and  other  incidents  of  the 
chuse.  Indeed,  the  causes  of  taciturnity  among  the  Indians 
may  be  easily  understood  if  we  consider  how  many  occasions 
of  speech  which  present  themselves  to  us  are  utterly  unknown 
to  thcn\ — tlie  records  of  histor}',  the  pursuits  of  science,  the 
disquisitions  of  philubuphy,  the  systems  of  politics,  the  business 


88 


OLD   AXD   NEW    MACKINAC. 


and  tlic  amusements  of  the  day,  and  the  transactions  of  the  four 
corners  of  the  world. 

"  Eij^ht  days  had  passed  in  tranquility,  when  there  arrivcc! 
a  band  of  Indians  from  tlic  Bay  of  Saguenaum.  Tlic}-  had  as- 
sisted at  the  siege  of  Detroit,  and  came  to  muster  as  many  re- 
cruits for  that  service  as  they  could.  For  my  own  part,  I  was 
soon  informed  that,  as  I  was  the  only  Englishman  in  the  place, 
they  proposed  to  kill  me  in  order  to  give  their  friends  a  mess 
of  English  broth,  to  raise  their  courage. 

"  This  intelligence  was  not  of  the  most  agreeable  kind, 
and  in  consequence  of  receiving  it  I  requested  my  friend  to  carry 
me  to  the  Sault  de  Sainte  Marie,  at  wliich  place  I  knew  the 
Indians  to  be  peaceably  inclined,  and  that  M.  Cadotte  enjoyed 
a  powerful  influence  over  their  conduct.  They  considered  M. 
Cadotte  as  their  chief,  and  he  was  not  only  my  friend,  but  a 
friend  to  the  Englisli.  It  was  by  him  that  the  Chippewas  of 
Lake  Superior  were  prevented  from  joining  Pontiac. 

"  Wawatam  was  not  slow  to  exert  himself  for  my  preser- 
vation, but,  leaving  Michilimackinac  in  the  night,  transported 
myself  and  all  his  lodge  to  Point  St.  Ignace,  on  the  opposite 
side  of  the  strait.  Here  we  remained  till  daylight,  and  then 
went  into  the  Bay  of  Boutchitaony,  in  which  we  spent  three 
days  in  fishing  and  hunting,  and  where  we  found  plenty  of 
wild  fowl.  Leaving  the  bay  we  made  for  the  Isle  aux  Ou- 
tardes,  where  we  were  obliged  to  put  in  on  account  of  the 
wind's  coming  ahead.     We  proposed  sailing  for  the  Sault  the 


next  mornmg. 


"  But  when  the  morning  came  Wawatam's  wife  com- 
plained that  she  was  sick,  adding  that  she  had  had  bad  dreams, 
and  knew  that  if  we  went  to  the  Sault  we  should  all  be  de- 
stroyed. To  have  argued  at  this  time  against  the  infallibility  of 
dreams  would  have  been  extremely  unadvisable,  since  I  should 
have  appeared  to  be  guilty,  not  only  of  an  odious  want  of  faith, 
but  also  of  a  still  more  odious  want  of  sensibility  to  the  possible 
calamities  of  a  fiiniily  which  had  done  so  much  for  the  allevia- 
tion of  mine.     I  was  silent,  but  the  disappointment  seemed  to 


ESC/     E    OF   IIEXRY   AND    OTHERS. 


S9 


seal  my  fate.  No  prospect  opened  to  console  me.  To  return 
to  Micliilimackinac  could  only  ensure  my  destruction,  anil  to 
remain  at  tlic  island  was  to  brave  almost  equal  danger,  since 
it  lay  in  the  direct  route  between  the  fort  and  the  Missisaki, 
along  which  the  Indians  from  Detroit  were  hourly  expected  to 
pass  on  the  business  of  their  mission.  I  doubted  not  but,  tak- 
ing advantage  of  the  solitary  situation  of  the  famih',  they  would 
carry  into  execution  their  design  of  killing  mc. 

"  Unable  therefore  to  take  any  part  in  the  direction  of  our 
course,  but  a  prey  at  the  same  time  to  the  most  anxious  thoughts 
as  to  my  own  condition,  I  passed  all  the  day  on  the  highest  part 
to  which  I  could  climb  of  a  tall  tree,  and  whence  the  lake  on 
both  sides  of  the  island  lay  open  to  my  view.  Here  I  might 
hope  to  learn  at  the  earliest  possible  moment  the  approach  of 
canoes,  and  by  this  means  be  warned  in  time  to  conceal  myself. 

"  On  the  second  morning  I  returned,  as  soon  as  it  was 
light,  to  my  watch-tower,  on  which  I  had  not  been  long  before 
I  discovered  a  sail,  coming  from  Micliilimackinac.  The  sail 
was  a  white  one,  and  much  larger  than  those  usually  employed 
by  the  northern  Indians.  I  therefore  indulged  a  hope  that  it 
might  be  a  Canadian  canoe  on  its  voyage  to  Montreal,  and  that 
I  might  be  able  to  prev^ail  upon  the  crew  to  take  me  with  them, 
and  thus  release  me  from  all  my  troubles. 

"  My  hopes  continued  to  gain  strength,  for  I  soon  per- 
suaded myself  that  the  manner  in  which  the  j^addlcs  were  used 
on  board  the  canoe  was  Canadian,  and  not  Indian.  My  spirits 
were  elated,  but  disappointment  had  become  so  usual  with  me 
that  I  could  not  suffer  myself  to  look  to  the  event  with  any 
strength  of  confidence.  Enough,  however,  appeared  at  length 
to  demonstrate  itself  to  induce  mc  to  descend  the  tree  and  re- 
pair to  the  lodge  with  my  tidings  and  schemes  of  liberty.  The 
family  congratidated  mc  on  the  approach  of  so  fair  an  oppor- 
tunity of  escape,  and  niy  fatlicr  and  brother  (for  he  was  alter- 
nately each  of  these)  lit  his  pipe  and  pi'escnted  it  to  me,  say- 
ingf '  jSIy  son,  this  may  be  the  last  time  that  ever  you  and  I 
shall  smoke  out  of  the  same  pipe  !     I  am  sorry  to  part  with 


90 


OLD   AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


you.  You  know  the  aUcctiou  which  I  have  always  borne  you, 
and  the  dangers  to  which  I  have  exposed  myself  and  family  to 
preserve  you  from  your  enemies,  and  I  am  happy  to  find  that 
my  ell'orts  promise  not  to  have  been  in  vain.'  At  this  time  a 
boy  came  into  the  lodge,  intbrming  us  that  the  canoe  had  come 
from  Micliilimackinac,  and  was  boiuul  to  the  Sault  de  Saintc 
Marie.  It  was  manned  by  three  Canadians,  and  was  carrying 
home  Madame  Cadotte,  wife  of  M.  Cadotte,  already  mentioned. 

"My  hopes  of  going  to  Montreal  being  now  dissipated,  I 
resolved  on  accompanying  Madame  Cadotte,  with  her  permis- 
sion, to  the  Sault.  On  communicating  my  wishes  to  Madame 
Cadotte,  she  cheerfully  acceded  to  them.  Madame  Cadotte,  as 
I  have  already  mentioned,  was  an  Indian  woman  of  the  Chip- 
pewa nation,  and  she  was  very  generally  respected. 

"  My  departure  fixed  upon,  I  returned  to  the  lodge,  where 
I  packed  up  my  wardroWe,  consisting  of  my  two  shirts,  pair  of 
Icffgifigs^  and  blanket.  Besides  these  I  took  a  gun  and  ammu- 
nition, presenting  what  remained  further  to  my  host.  I  also 
returned  the  silver  arm-bands,  with  which  the  family  had 
decorated  me  the  year  before. 

"  We  now  exchanged  farewells,  with  an  emotion  entirely 
reciprocal.  I  did  not  quit  the  lodge  without  the  most  grateful 
sense  of  the  many  acts  of  goodness  which  I  had  experienced  in 
it,  nor  without  the  sincerest  respect  for  the  virtues  which  I  had 
witnessed  among  its  members.  All  the  family  accompanied 
me  to  the  beach,  and  the  canoe  had  no  sooner  put  ofi'than  Wa- 
watam  commenced  an  address  to  the  Ki'chi  Ma'ni'to,  beseech- 
ing him  to  take  care  of  me,  his  brother,  till  we  should  next 
meet.  This,  he  had  told  me,  would  not  be  long,  as  he  intend- 
ed to  return  to  Micliilimackinac  for  a  short  time  only,  and  then 
would  follow  me  to  the  Sault.  We  had  proceeded  to  too  great 
a  distance  to  allow  of  our  hearing  his  voice,  before  Wawatam 
had  ceased  to  oflicr  up  his  prayers. 

"  Being  now  no  longer  in  the  society  of  Indians,  I  laid 
aside  the  dress  putting  on  that  of  a  Canadian — a   molton  or 


ESCAPE   OF    HENRY   AND  OTHERS. 


91 


lilaiikct  coat  over  my  shirt,  and  a  haiulkcrchicf  about  my  head, 
hats  being  very  little  worn  in  this  country. 

"  At  daybreak  on  the  second  morning  of  our  voyage  we 
embarked,  and  presently  perceived  several  canoes  behind  us. 
As  they  approached  we  ascertained  them  to  be  the  tleet  bound 
for  the  Missisaki,  of  which  I  had  been  so  long  in  dread.  It 
amounted  to  twenty  sail.  On  coming  up  with  us  and  sur- 
rounding our  canoe,  and  amid  general  inquiries  concerning  the 
news,  an  Indian  challenged  me  for  an  Englishman,  and  his 
companions  sujjported  him  by  declaring  that  I  looked  very  like 
one  ;  but  I  alVected  not  to  understand  any  of  the  questions  which 
they  asked  me,  and  Madame  Cadotte  assured  them  that  I  was 
a  Canadian  whom  she  had  brought  on  his  first  voyage  from 
Montreal. 

"  The  following  day  saw  us  safely  landed  at  the  Sault, 
where  I  experienced  a  generous  welcome  from  M.  Cadotte. 
There  were  thirty  warriors  at  this  place,  restrained  from  join- 
ing in  the  war  only  by  M.  Cadotte's  influence.  Here  for  five 
days  I  was  once  more  in  the  possession  of  tranquility,  but  on 
sixth  a  young  Indian  came  into  M.  Cadotte's  saying  that  a  ca- 
noe full  of  warriors  had  just  arrived  from  Michilimackinac ; 
that  they  had  inquired  for  me,  and  that  he  believed  their  inten- 
tions to  be  bad.  Nearly  at  the  same  time  a  message  came  from 
the  good  chief  of  the  village,  desiring  me  to  conceal  myself  un- 
til he  should  discover  the  views  and  temper  of  the  strangers. 
A  garret  was  a  second  time  my  place  of  refuge,  and  it  was  not 
long  before  the  Indians  came  to  M.  Cadotte's.  My  friend  im- 
mediately informed  Mut'chi'ki'wish,  their  chief,  who  was  re- 
lated to  his  wife,  of  the  design  imputed  to  them  of  mischief 
against  myself.  iSIutchikiwish  frankly  acknowledged  that  they 
had  had  such  a  design,  but  added  that,  if  displeasing  to  M.  Ca- 
dotte, it  should  be  abandoned.  He  then  further  stated  that 
their  enand  was  to  raise  a  party  of  v/arriors  to  return  with 
them  to  Detroit,  and  that  it  had  been  their  intention  to  take  me 
with  them. 

"  In  regard  to  the  principal  of  the  two  objects  thus  dis- 


■j^^'^^Llh' 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


1.0 


I.I 


1.25 


1.=.'  IIIIIM 


ill    112.5 


1^ 


|3-6       lllll^^ 

"       2.0 


U    ill  1.6 


Photographic 

Sciences 
Corporation 


s. 


ip 


\ 


S 


^ 


k 


i\ 


'd>' 


\ 


^9> 


V 


\^> 


23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  US80 

(716)  872-4503 


'^ 


'^    4. 


OLD   AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


closed,  M.  Cadottc  proceeded  to  assemble  all  the  chiefs  and 
warriors  of  the  village,  and  these,  after  deliberating  for  some 
time  among  themselves,  sent  for  the  strangers,  to  whom  both 
M.  Cadotte  and  the  chief  of  the  village  addressed  a  speech. 
In  these  speeches,  after  recurring  to  the  designs  confessed  to 
have  been  entertained  against  myself,  who  was  now  declared 
to  be  under  the  immediate  protection  of  all  the  chiefs,  by  whom 
any  insult  I  might  sustain  would  be  avenged,  the  ambassadors 
were  peremptorily  told  that  they  might  go  back  as  they  came, 
none  of  the  young  men  of  this  village  being  foolish  enough  to 
join  them. 

"  A  moment  after  a  report  was  brought  that  a  canoe  had 
just  arrived  from  Ni-igara.  As  this  was  a  place  from  which 
every  one  was  anxious  to  hear  news,  a  message  was  sent  to 
these  fresh  strangers,  requesting  Uiem  to  come  to  the  council. 
They  came  accordingly,  and  being  seated,  a  long  silence  en- 
sued. At  length  one  of  them,  taking  up  a  belt  of  wampum, 
addressed  himself  thus  to  the  assembly  :  '  My  friends  and  broth- 
ers, I  am  come  v/ith  this  belt  from  our  great  father.  Sir  William 
Johnson.  lie  desired  me  to  come  to  you,  as  his  ambassador, 
and  tell  you  that  he  is  making  a  great  feast  at  Fort  Niagara  ; 
that  his  kettles  are  all  ready  and  his  fires  lit.  He  invites  you 
to  partake  of  the  feast  in  common  with  your  friends  the  Six 
Nations,  which  have  all  made  peace  with  the  English.  He 
advises  you  to  seize  this  opportunity  of  doing  the  same,  as  you 
cannot  otherwise  fail  of  being  destroyed,  for  the  English  are  on 
their  march  with  a  great  army,  which  will  be  joined  by  difler- 
ent  nations  of  Indians.  In  a  word,  before  the  fall  of  the  leaf 
they  will  be  at  Michilimackinac,  and  the  Six  Nations  with 
them.' 

*  "  The  tenor  of  this  speech  greatly  alarmed  the  Indians  of 

the  Sault,  who,  after  a  very  short  consultation,  agreed  to  send 
twenty  deputies  to  Sir  William  Johnson,  at  Niagara.  Tliis 
was  a  project  highly  interesting  to  me,  since  it  ollbred  me  the 
means  of  leaving  the  country.     I  intimated  this  to  the  chief  of 


i^iiiliitik 


ESCAPE   OF   HENRY   AND   OTHERS. 


93 


the  village,  and  received  his  promise  that  I  should  accompany 
the  deputation. 

"  Very  little  time  was  proposed  to  be  lost  in  setting  for- 
ward on  the  voyage  ;  but  the  occasion  was  of  too  much  mag- 
nitude not  to  call  for  more  than  humari  knowledge  and 
discretion ;  and  preparations  were  accordingly  made  for  sol- 
emnly invoking  and  consulting  the  Great  Turtle.  In  this, 
the  first  thing  to  be  done  was  the  building  of  a  large  house  or 
wigwam,  within  which  was  placed  a  species  of  tent,  for  the 
use  of  the  priest,  and  reception  of  the  spirit.  The  tent  was 
formed  of  moose-skins,  hung  over  a  frame-work  of  wood. 
Five  poles,  or  rather  pillars,  of  five  diflerent  species  of  timber, 
about  ten  feet  in  height,  and  eight  inches  in  diameter,  were  set 
in  a  circle  of  about  four  feet  in  diameter.  The  holes  made  to 
receive  them  were  about  two  feet  deep  ;  and  the  pillars  being 
set,  the  holes  were  filled  up  again  with  the  earth  which  had 
been  dug  out.  At  top  the  pillars  were  bound  together  by  a 
circular  hoop,  or  girder.  Over  the  whole  of  this  edifice  wei"e 
spread  the  moose-skins,  covering  it  at  top  and  round  the  sides, 
and  made  fast  with  tliongs  of  the  same  ;  except  that  on  one 
side  a  part  was  left  unfastened,  to  admit  of  the  entrance  of  the 
priest. 

"  The  ceremonies  did  not  commence  but  with  the  approach 
of  night.  To  give  light  within  the  house,  several  fires  were 
kindled  round  the  tent.  Nearly  the  whole  village  assembled 
in  the  house,  and  myself  among  the  rest.  It  was  not  long 
before  the  priest  appeared,  almost  in  a  state  of  nakedness.  As 
he  approached  the  tent  the  skins  were  lifted  up  as  much  as  was 
necessary  to  allow  of  his  creeping  under  them,  on  his  hands 
and  knees.  His  head  was  scarcely  within  side,  when  the  edi- 
fice, massy  as  it  has  been  described,  began  to  shake  ;  and  the 
skins  were  no  sooner  let  fall,  than  the  sounds  of  numerous 
voices  were  heard  beneath  them  ;  some  yelling ;  some  barking 
as  dogs ;  some  howling  like  wolves  ;  and  in  this  horrible  con- 
cert were  mingled  screams  and  sobs,  as  of  despair,  anguish, 
and  the  sharpest  pain.     Articulate  speech  was  also  uttered,  as 


ill 


1?' 


!>;, 


>       1 


II; ' 


94 


OLD   AND   XEW   MACKINAC. 


if  from  human  lips,  but  in  a  tongue  unknown  to  any  of  the 
audience. 

"  After  some  time,  these  confused  and  frightful  noises  were 
succeeded  by  a  perfect  silence ;  and  now  a  voice,  not  heard 
before,  seemed  to  manifest  the  arrival  of  a  new  character  in 
the  tent.  This  was  a  low  and  feeble  voice,  resembling  the  cry 
of  a  young  puppy.  The  sound  was  no  sooner  distinguished, 
than  .ill  the  Indians  clapped  their  hands  for  joy,  exclaiming 
that  this  was  the  Chief  Spirit — the  Turtle — the  spirit  that 
never  lied  !  Other  voices,  which  they  had  discriminated  from 
time  to  time,  they  had  previously  hissed,  as  recognizing  them 
to  belong  to  evil  and  lying  spirits,  which  deceive  mankind. 
New  sounds  came  from  the  tent.  During  the  space  of  half  an 
hour  a  succession  of  songs  were  heard,  in  which  a  diversity  of 
voices  met  tlie  ear.  From  his  first  entrance,  till  these  songs 
were  finished,  we  heard  nothing  in  the  proper  voice  of  the 
priest ;  but  now  he  addressed  the  multitude,  declaring  the 
presence  of  the  Great  Turtle,  and  the  spirit's  readiness  to 
answer  such  questions  as  should  be  proposed. 

"  The  questions  were  to  come  from  the  chief  of  the  vil- 
lage, who  was  silent,  however,  till  after  he  had  put  a  large 
quantity  of  tobacco  into  the  tent,  introducing  it  at  the  aperture. 
This  was  a  sacrifice,  oftered  to  the  spirit ;  for  spirits  are  sup- 
posed by  the  Indians  to  be  as  fond  of  tobacco  as  themselves. 
The  tobacco  accepted,  he  desired  the  priest  to  inquire, — 
Whether  or  not  the  English  were  preparing  to  make  war  upon 
the  Indians?  and,  whether  or  not  there  were  at  Fort  Niagara 
a  large  number  of  English  troops?  These  questions  having 
been  put  by  the  priest,  the  tent  instantly  shook  ;  and  for  some 
seconds  after,  it  continued  to  rock  so  violently  that  I  expected 
to  see  it  levelled  with  the  ground.  All  this  was  a  prelude,  as 
I  supposed,  to  the  answers  to  be  given  ;  but  a  terrific  cry 
announced,  with  sufficient  intelligibility,  the  departure  of  the 
Turtle. 

"  A  quarter  of  an  hour  elapsed  in  silence,  and  I  waited 
impatiently  to  discover  what  was  to  be  the  next  incident   in 


I 


kiitiiiui 


ESCAPE   OF   HENRY   AND   OTHERS. 


95 


this*  scene  of  imposture.  It  consisted  in  the  return  of  the 
spirit,  whose  voice  was  again  heard,  and  who  now  deHvered  a 
continued  speech.  The  huigiiage  of  the  Great  Turtle,  Hke 
that  which  we  had  heard  before,  was  wi^olly  unintelHgible  to 
every  ear,  that  of  the  priest  excepted  ;  and  it  was,  therefore, 
not  till  the  latter  gave  us  an  interpretation,  which  did  not  com- 
mence before  the  spirit  had  finished,  that  we  leai'ned  tflfe  pur- 
port of  this  extraordinary  communication. 

"  The  spirit,  as  we  were  now  informed  by  the  i^ricst,  had, 
during  his  short  absence,  crossed  Lake  Huron,  and  even  pro- 
ceeded as  far  as  Fort  Niagara,  wliich  is  at  the  head  of  Lake 
Ontario,  and  thence  to  Montreal.  At  Fort  Niagara  he  had 
seen  no  great  number  of  soldiers ;  but,  on  descending  the  St. 
Lawrence  as  low  as  Montreal,  he  had  foinul  the  river  covered 
with  boats,  and  the  boats  filled  with  soldiers,  in  number  like 
the  leaves  of  the  trees.  lie  had  met  them  on  their  way  up  the 
river,  coming  to  make  war  upon  the  Indians. 

"  The  chief  had  a  third  question  to  propose,  and  the  spirit, 
without  a  fresh  journey  to  Fort  Niagara,  was  able  to  give  it  an 
instant  and  most  favorable  answer.  '  If,'  said  the  chief,  '  the 
Indians  visit  Sir  William  Johnson,  will  they  be  received  as 
friends?' 

"  '  Sir  William  Johnson,'  said  tfic  spirit,  (and  after  the 
spirit,  the  priest,)  '  Sir  \Villiam  Johnson  will  fill  their  canoes 
with  presents :  with  blankets,  kettles,  guns,  gunpowder  and 
shot,  and  large  barrels  of  rum,  such  as  the  stoutest  of  the 
Indians  will  not  be  able  to  lift ;  and  every  man  will  return  in 
safety  to  his  family.'  At  this  the  transport  was  universal,  and, 
amid  the  clapping  of  hands,  a  hundred  voices  exclaimed.  'I 
w  ill  go  too  !     I  will  go  too  ! ' 

"  The  questions  of  public  interest  being  resolved,  individ- 
uals were  now  permitted  to  seize  the  opportunity  of  inquiring 
into  the  condition  of  their  absent  friends,  and  the  fate  of  such 
as  were  sick.  I  observed  that  the  answers  given  to  these  ques- 
tions allowed  of  much  latitude  of  interpretation. 

"  The  Great  Turtle  continued  to  be  consulted  till  near 


0 


OLD    AND    NEW   MACKINAC. 


i;i! 


»'f 


midnight,  when  all  the  crowd  dispersed  to  their  rcspeclive 
lodges. 

"  I  was  on  the  watch,  through  the  scjne  I  have  described, 
to  detect  the  jjarticular  contrivances  by  which  the  fraud  was 
carried  on ;  but,  such  was  the  skill  displayed  in  the  perform- 
ance, or  such  my  deficiency  of  penetration,  that  I  made  no 
discovWics,  but  came  away,  as  I  went,  with  no  more  than  those 
general  surmises  which  will  naturally  be  entertained  by  every 
reader." 

Henry  accompanied  the  Indian  deputation,  and  reached 
Fort  Niagara  in  safety,  where  he  was  received  in  the  most 
cordial  manner  by  Sir  William  Johnson.  Thus  he  escaped 
tlie  suficrings  and  dangers  which  the  capture  of  Michilimack- 
inac  had  brought  upon  him. 

The  reader  will  doubtless  be  interested  to  know  the  fate  of 
Minavavana,  or  the  Grand  Sautor,  as  he  was  otherwise  called, 
who  led  the  Ojibwas  at  the  massacre  of  Michilimackinac. 
The  following  notice  of  this  chief  is  from  the  pen  of  J.  Car- 
ver, Esq.,  an  English  gentleman  who  visited  Michilimackinac 
in  the  year  1766,  three  years  after  the  massacre  : 

"  The  first  I  accosted  were  Chii^pevvas,  inhabiting  near 
the  Ottowan  lakes ;  who  received  mc  with  great  cordiality, 
and  shook  me  by  the  ha«d  in  token  of  friendship.  At  some 
little  distance  behind  these,  stood  a  chief,  remarkably  tall  and 
well  made,  but  of  so  stern  an  aspect  that  the  most  undaunted 
person  could  not  behold  him  without  feeling  some  degree  of 
terror.  He  seemed  to  have  passed  the  meridian  of  life,  and 
by  the  mode  in  which  he  was  painted  and  tatooed,  1  discov- 
ered that  he  was  of  high  rank.  However,  I  approached  him 
in  a  courteous  manner,  and  expected  to  have  met  with  the 
same  reception  I  had  done  from  the  others  ;  but  to  my  great 
surprise,  he  withheld  his  hand,  and  looking  fiercely  at  me, 
said  in  the  Chippewa  tongue,  '  Caurin  nishishin  saganosh,' 
that  is,  '  The  English  are  no  good.'  As  he  had  his  tomahawk 
in  his  hand,  I  expected  that  .this  laconic  sentence  would  have 
been  followed  by  a  blow ;  to   prevent  which   I  drew  a  pistol 


ESCAPE    OF   IIEXRY   AND    OTHERS. 


97 


from  my  belt,  and  holding  it  in  a  careless  position,  passed  close 
by  him,  to  let  him  see  I  was  not  afraid  of  him. 

"  I  learned  soon  after,  from  the  other  Indians,  that  this  was 
a  chief  called  by  the  French  the  Grand  Sautor,  or  the  Great 
Chippewa  Chief,  for  they  denominate  the  Chippewas,  Sautors. 
They  likewise  told  me  that  he  had  been  always  a  steady  friend 
to  that  people,  and  when  they  delivered  up  Michilimackinac  to 
the  English  on  their  evacuation  of  Canada,  the  Grand  Sautor 
had  sworn  that  he  would  ever  remain  the  avowed  enemy  of  its 
new  possessors,  as  the  territories  on  which  the  fort  is  built 
belonged  to  him. 

*'  Since  I  came  to  England  I  have  been  informed  that  the 
Grand  Sautor,  having  rendered  himself  more  and  more  dis- 
gustful to  the  English  by  his  inveterate  enmity  towards  them, 
was  at  length  stabbed  in  his  tent,  as  he  encamped  near  Michili- 
mackinac, by  a  trader." 

For  a  little  more  than  a  year  after  the  massacre,  !Mackinac 
was  only  occupied  by  the  courcurs  de  bois  and  such  Indian 
bands  as  chose  to  make  it  a  temporary  residence  ;  but  alter  the 
treaty  with  the  Indians,  Captain  Howard,  with  a  sufficiently 
large  detachment  of  troojis,  \vas  sent  to  take  possession  of  it, 
and  "  once  more  the  cross  of  St.  George  was  a  rallying  jDoint 
and  the  protection  of  the  adventurous  traders. 

"  In  1779  a  party  of  British  officers  passed  over  from  the 
point  of  tlie  peninsula  to  the  island  of  Michilimackinac,  to 
reconnoitcr,  with  the  intention  of  removing  the  fort  thither. 
After  selecting  a  location,  they  asked  permission  of  the  Indians 
to  occupy  it.  Some  time  elapsed  before  their  consent  could  be 
obtained  ;  consequently  the  removal  was  not  eflected  until  the 
ensuing  summer.  A  government  house  and  a  few  other  build- 
ings were  erected,  on  the  site  of  the  present  village,  and  the 
troops  took  possession  on  the  15th  of  Jul}',  17S0. 

"  The  removal  of  the  inhabitants  from  the  main-land  to 
the  island  was  gradual,  and  the  fort,  which  was  built  on  the 
site  of  tlie  present  one,  was  not  completed  until  17S3." 


•M 


-  =* 


OLD  AND  NEW   MACKINAC. 


CHAPTER  VI. 


i*i 


i 


tl 


WAR   OF    l8l2. 

When  the  war  of  1812  broke  out,  the  territory  of  Michigan 
was  in  a  defenseless  condition.  The  military  posts  about  the 
lakes  were  but  poorly  fortified,  and  manned  with  insufficient 
garrisons.  They  were  situated  in  the  midst  of  almost  impene- 
trable forests,  filled  with  hostile  savages,  while  at  no  great 
distance  was  a  large  body  of  British  subjects  who  could  easily 
be  brought  against  them. 

The  garrison  of  Fort  Mackinac,  at  the  time,  consisted  of 
only  fifty-seven  effective  men,  under  the  command  of  Lieuten- 
ant Hanks.  The  fort  itself  was  mainly  the  same  as  now. 
The  walls  which  had  been  built  by  the  British  in  i/So,  and 
which  are  t;till  standing,  were  surmounted  by  a  palisade  of 
cedar  pickets  about  ten  feet  high,  intended  as  a  defense  against 
the  Indians.  To  make  it  impossible  to  scale  this  palisade,  each 
picket  was  protected  at  the  top  by  iron  prongs,  made  sharp, 
and  by  hooks  on  the  outside.  Through  it  were  numerous  port- 
holes, through  which  a  leaden  shower  of  death  might  be  made 
to  pour  upon  any  foe  that  should  dare  to  come  in  reach.  Two 
or  three  guns  of  small  calibre  were  planted  at  convenient  places 
upon  the  walls,  and  one  small  piece  in  each  of  the  three  block- 
houses which  are  yet  standing.  The  town,  at  the  time,  was 
much  smaller  than  now.  Except  the  old  distillery  which  stood 
upon  the  beach  some  little  distance  beyond  the  present  western 
limits  of  Shanty  Town,  no  building  had  been  erected  west  of 
the  house  new  occupied  by  Mr.  Ambrose  Davenport,  and  none 
east  of  the  fort  garden  except  one  small  shanty  which  stood 
near  the  present  site  of  the  old  Mission  Church.    With  one 


i^p^T" 


THE   WAR   OF    1812. 


99 


u'M 


exception,  the  houses  were  all  one  story  buildings,  built  of 
cedar  and  roofed  with  cedar  bark.  Tiiis  one  house  which 
formed  the  excepti-  1  was  then  occupied  by  a  Dr.  Mitchell, 
and  is  still  standing.  The  several  traders  then  on  the  island 
hud  each  what  might  be  called  a  store,  and  there  was  one 
dock,  so  called,  which  consisted  of  two  cribs  filled  with  stone, 
and  connected  with  each  other  and  with  the  beach  by  two  logs 
placed  side  by  side. 

In  1795,  when  the  British  gave  up  Fort  Mackinac  to  the 
Americans,  they  repaired  to  the  island  of  St.  Joseph,  which  is 
situated  in  St.  Mary's  River,  about  twenty  miles  above  Detour, 
and  there  constructed  a  fort.  This  fort  was  garrisoned,  at  the 
commencement  of  the  war,  by  a  small  company  of  British 
regulars,  under  command  of  Captain  Roberts. 

When  war  was  declared,  there  was  an  unpardonable  neg- 
ligence on  the  part  of  the  War  Department  in  not  furnishing 
the  western  frontiers  with  information  of  that  important  event. 
Owing  to  this  negligence,  the  English  at  Detroit  were  in  pos- 
session of  this  important  news  before  it  reached  the  American 
side,  and  the  English  commander,  taking  advantage  of  that 
fact,  hastened  to  transmit  the  intelligence  to  all  his  out-posts 
and  take  such  steps  as  would  best  secin-e  the  interests  of  the 
British  crown.  Among  his  expedients  was  a  plan  for  an  im- 
mediate attack  on  Fort  Mackinac.  With  almost  incredible 
dispatch,  a  messenger  was  sent  to  St.  Joseph,  bearing  a  letter 
to  Captain  Roberts,  which,  strange  to  say,  was  franked  by 
the  Secretary  of  the  Amcricatt  Treasury^  containing  the 
information  of  the  declaration  of  war,  and  also  the  suggestion 
of  an  immediate  attack  on  this  fort  as  the  best  means  of 
defending  his  own. 

Roberts  was  but  poorly  prepared  for  an  enterprise  of  such 
moment,  yet,  entering  warmly  into  the  views  of  his  superior 
officer,  and  being  cordially  supported  by  the  agents  of  the  two 
western  Fur  Companies,  he  was  not  long  in  deciding  ui^on  his 
course.  Messengers  were  hastily  dispatched  to  the  Ottawas 
and  Chippewas,  two  neighboring  Indian  tribes,  who,  eager  for 


lOO 


OLD   AND   NKW    MACKIXAC. 


Vv 


\*\  ■  ii' 


i 


strife,  soon  flocked  to  his  standard  in  larjje  numbers.  Tlie 
French,  jealous  of  the  Americans,  still  farther  augmented  his 
strength,  and,  in  the  short  space  of  eight  days,  he  had  a  force, 
naval  and  military,  of  more  than  a  thousand,  at  his  command. 
On  the  i6th  day  of  July  he  embarked. 

Let  us  now  turn  our  attention  to  Fort  Mackinac.  The 
first  intimation  which  the  little  garrison  and  town  received  that 
all  was  not  right,  was  from  the  conduct  of  the  Indians.  In 
obedience  to  the  summons  of  Captain  Roberts,  they  were  going 
toward  the  Sault  in  large  numbers.  This  caused  some  uneasi- 
ness, and  Lieutenant  Hanks,  with  the  citizens  of  the  place, 
made  every  eflbrt  to  learn  from  them  the  object  of  their  jour- 
ney. Several  councils  were  called,  but  in  vain.  See'gee'noe, 
chief  of  the  Ottawas,  was  questioned  closely,  but  not  a  word 
could  be  elicited  from  him  which  in  any  way  explained  their 
conduct.  This  caused  the  cloud  of  uncertainty  to  lower,  and 
miilc  the  anxiety  of  the  citizens  more  and  more  painful. 
Failing  to  get  any  satisfaction  from  the  Indians,  they  next 
called  a  public  meeting  of  the  citizens,  to  consult  upon  the 
mattc"  and  it  was  resolved  to  make  yet  another  ellbrt  to  un- 
ravel the  myster3'. 

Mr.  Michael  Dousman,  an  American  fur  trader,  had  some 
time  before  sent  two  of  his  agents,  William  Aikins  and  John 
Drew,  into  the  Lake  Superior  region  to  trade  with  the  Indians 
for  furs.  He  hat!  heard  of  their  return  to  the  Sault,  but  knew 
of  no  reason  why  they  had  not  returned  to  headquarters  on 
this  island.  He  therefore,  on  the  i6th  of  July,  under  pretence 
of  ascertaining  the  reason  for  the  delay,  but  really  to  learn 
what  it  was  that  called  so  many  of  the  Indians  in  that  direc- 
tion, set  out  for  the  .Sault,  starting  about  noon.  When  four  or 
five  miles  this  side  of  Detour,  he  learned  the  whole  truth,  for, 
meeting  Captain  Roberts'  expedition,  he  was  taken  prisoner, 
barely  escaping  with  his  life. 

When  night  had  let  her  sable  curtain  fall  over  the  wide 
expanse  of  water  and  forest,  and  the  expedition  was  nearing 
the  island,  it  was  proposed  by  Captain  Roberts  to  send  one 


THE   WAR   OF    l8l3. 


lOI 


p 


Oliver,  a  British  trader,  to  the  people  of  the  town,  to  inform 
them  of  his  approach  and  conduct  them  to  a  place  of  safety. 
Mr.  Dousman  now  urj^ed  upon  Captain  Roberts  that  the  peo- 
ple would  perhaps  be  slow  to  believe  such   a  report  from  a 
stranger,  and,  anxious  for  the  safety  of  his  friends,  asked  leave 
to  return  on  that  mission  himself.     This  he  was  permitted  to 
do,  having  first  taken  oath  that  he  would  not  f^ive  information 
of  their   approach   to  the  garrison.     Separating  himself  from 
his  captors,  he  returned  to  the  harbor  in  ftont  of  the  town, 
and,  an  hour  before  day,  proceeded  to  the  house  of  Mr.  Arr>- 
brose   R.   Davenport,  and   rapped    loudly   at   the   door.     Mr. 
Davenport,   on    learning   who   was   at   the   door,    exclaimed, 
*'  What,  Dousman,  have  you  come  back!  "  and  rising  hastily, 
came  out.     "  Yes,"  replied  Dousman,  "  I  have  come  back,  and 
I  have  important  news  for  you."     After  extorting  from  him  a 
promise  of  secresy,  he  proceeded  to  inform  him  that  zuar  had 
been  declared^  and  that  the  British  had  come  to  take  the  fort, 
being  already  upon  the  island.    Judge  of  the  surprise,  we  may 
say  indignation,  of  the  citizens,  as,  one  by  one,  they  received 
the  information.     We  can  well  imagine  that  there  was  hurry- 
ing to  and  fro  through  the  streets  of  Mackinac  on  that  eventful 
morning.     Fifty-eight  years  have  run  their  courses  and  nearly 
two  generations  of  the  human  family  have  passed  away  since 
that  time,  anil  yet  \vc  can  see  the  anxious  faces  that  looked  out 
from  every  door  and  window  as  the  unwelcome  news  was 
whispered    in   the  ears  of   startled  sleepers.     "  What   can  it 
mean  !  "  is  eagerly  and  simultaneously  asked  by  every  two  that 
meet,  but  not  a  man  in  Mackinac  can  imravel   the   mystery. 
Word  is  circulated  that  if  the  citizens  will  flee  to  the  distillery 
they  shall   be   safe.     Like   wild-fire   the    message   goes   from 
mouth  to  mouth,  until  every  man,  woman  and  child  is  on  the 
way  to  the  place  designated. 

Meanwhile,  Captain  Roberts  proceeded  to  the  north-west 
side  of  the  island,  landed  his  forces,  and  began  his  march 
toward  the  fort.  At  the  farm  near  the  landing  they  took  pos- 
session of  a  number  of  cattle  belonging  to  Michael  Dousman, 


I02 


OLD  AND  NEW  MACKINACV 


who  then  owned  the  farm,  and  before  the  dawn  of  day  readied 
the  hollow  which  may  be  seen  a  short  distance  to  the  rear  of 
the  fort.  Upon  a  little  ridge  which  separates  this  hollow  from 
the  parade  ground  (and  only  a  few  paces  from  it)  they  planted 
a  gun  in  the  road,  and  anxiously  awaited  the  approacli  o''  day. 

Inside  the  fort,  all  was  the  most  perfect  quiet,  not  a  sus- 
picion that  the  war  bugle  had  been  blown  found  a  place  in  a 
single  bosom,  though  the  enemy's  gun  was  even  then  pointing 
over  them  at  the  distance  of  but  a  few  rods.  The  dawn 
appeared,  and  the  imsuspecting  garrison  began  to  move.  As 
Lieutenant  Hanks  looked  out  from  his  quarters,  (the  same  as 
are  now  occupied  by  the  commanding  officer)  he  was  struck 
with  the  unusual  quiet  that  prevailed  in  the  tovvn  below. 
What  could  it  mean?  No  smoke  went  curlinj;  gracefully  up- 
ward to  the  sky  as  usual,  and  no  hurried  footsteps  were  in  the 
streets.  Strange  !  Something  evidently  was  wrong,  and  sum- 
moning Lieutenant  Darrow,  he  ordered  him  vvith  two  men  to 
go  dov/n  and  ascertain  what  it  might  be.  Accordingly  this 
officer  descended  to  the  town,  to  search  for  the  trouble.  lie 
proceeded  on  his  way  until  he,  too,  had  arrived  at  the  distillery, 
M'hen  the  truth  flashed  upon  him.  Under  a  strong  guard 
which  had  been  sent  by  Captain  Roberts,  the  inhabitants  of  the 
place  were  awaiting  the  decision  that  would  again  make  them 
subjects  of  the  British  crown.  Darrow  entered  the  distillery 
and  shook  hands  with  its  inmates,  but  when  he  proposed  to 
return  to  the  fort,  the  guards  proposed  to  make  him  prisoner. 
Taking  a  pistol  in  each  hand,  and  demanding  permission  to 
retire,  he  faced  the  guard,  and,  followed  by  his  men,  walked 
backwards  till  beyond  their  reach,  when  he  returned  v»'ithout 
molestation  to  the  fort. 

But  Lieutenant  Hanks  had  no  need  of  waiting  for  the 
return  of  Darrow  to  know  the  truth,  for  the  sharp  report  of  a 
British  gun  soon  told  him  all,  and  more  than  all,  that  he  wished 
to  know  ;  and  before  the  distant  forests  had  ceased  to  reecho 
the  sound,  or  the  smoke  of  that  unwelcome  sunrise  gun  was 
lost  in  the  azure  vault  of  heaven,  a  British  officer,  with  flag  in 


THE   WAR  OF    I  Si  2, 


103 


hand,  appeared  and  demanded  a  surrender,  emphasi/lng  the 
demand  hy  a  statement  of  the  overwhehnlng  niuiibers  of  the 
nivading  army  and  a  threat  of  indiscriminate  shuighter  by  the 
savages  at  the  first  motion  toward  resistance. 

When  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  had  been  gnJ,  red 
under  guard  at  the  distillery,  Messrs.  Davenport,  Abbot,  Ur).^t- 
wick.  Stone,  and  John  Dousman,  who  were  among  the  Icidnig 
citizens,  were  advised  to  go  at  once  to  the  landing  .  nd  give 
themselves  uj^-  i  /  Colonel  Dickson,  who  had  been  left  at  tiiat 
point  b^'  Captain  Roberts  for  that  purpose.  This  they  ccoid- 
ingly  (lid.  They  were  then  urged  by  Colonel  Dickson  to 
pctititjn  Lieutenant  Hanks  to  surrender  the  fort  at  once,  stating 
that  the  Indians  would  be  entirely  unmanageable  in  case  there 
should  be  any  resistance.     This  advice  they  also  followed. 

The  position  in  which  Hanks  was  now  placed  can  be 
easily  imagined.  Not  having  received  intelligence  of  the 
declaration  of  war,  he  was  wholly  olV  his  guard,  and  unpre- 
pared to  defend  himself.  The  British  troops,  though  less  in 
number  than  the  garrison  under  his  command,  had  a  position 
which  commanded  the  fort,  and  were  sujiported  by  nearly  a 
thousand  Indian  warriors,  who  had  been  instructed  to  show  no 
mercy  in  case  that  any  resistance  was  made.  Such  being  the 
case.  Lieutenant  Hanks  surrendered  the  fort  without  even  the 
ceremony  of  a  refusal,  and  his  men  were  paroled  and  sent  to 
Detroit. 

Some  blame  has  been  attached  to  the  conduct  of  Lieuten- 
ant Hanks  in  this  transaction.  It  has  been  claimed  that,  to 
say  the  least,  the  surrender  was  precipitate  ;  that  some  experi- 
ment of  the  enemy's  power  to  take  the  fort  was  due  to  the 
honor  of  the  American  flag,  and  ought  to  have  been  made,  and 
that  the  result  would  probably  have  shown  "  that  an  invading 
corps,  composed  of  thirty  regulars  and  a  rabble  of  engages 
and  savages,  witFi  two  old  rusty  guns  of  small  calibre,  was 
much  less  formidable  than  had  been  imagined."  This  seems 
very  plausible,  especially  to  those  who  are  unacquainted  with 
the  savage  barbarities  of  Indian  ^varfare,  but  when  it  is  con- 


m 
^ 


104 


OLD   AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


sidcrcd  that  the  first  act  of  resistance  would  probably  have 
been  the  signal  for  the  uplifting  of  a  thousand  tomahawks  and 
the  brandishing  of  a  thousand  scalping-knivcs,  wc  hesitate  to 
condemn  the  conduct  of  Lieutenant  Hanks  in  thus  promptly 
making  the  surrender. 

Some  one  was  doubtless  to  blame.  It  was  an  unpardon- 
able oversight  that  information  of  the  existence  of  war  was  not 
ir  mediately  transmitted  to  the  fort,  and  thorough  preparation 
made  for  its  defense.  It  was  not,  perhaps,  the  most  flattering 
indication  of  good  generalship  that  Lieutenant  Hanks  should 
permit  himself  to  be  thus  surprised.  He  was  on  tlie  extreme 
frontier,  surrounded  by  Indian  nations  whom  he  knew  to  be 
imfriendly  and  treacherous,  and  but  a  few  miles  distant  fiom 
the  inveterate  e  lemies  of  the  American  flag,  whose  wounded 
pride  made  them  as  unscrupulous  as  the  savages  themselves, 
and  he  should  not  have  allowed  himself  to  be  thus  surprised. 
Under  these  unfavorable  circumstances,  his  vigilance  ouglit  to 
have  saved  him  from  the  humiliating  necessity  of  surremier  i 
but  after  the  English  had  planted  their  guns  almost  beneath  the 
shadow  of  the  fort,  and  the  assembled  savages,  with  ijiiple- 
ments  of  death  in  their  hands,  stood  ready  and  eager,  if  occa- 
sion should  ofter,  to  repeat  the  bloody  scenes  of  1763  at  Old 
Mackinac,  was  it  not  wise  in  him  to  make  a  virtue  of  necessity 
and  permit  the  English  to  take  peaceable  possession  of  the 
fort  and  the  island.?  We  leave  the  reader  to  judge  for  him- 
self in  the  premises. 

When  the  fort  had  been  surrendered,  the  next  step  was  to 
assemble  the  citizens  at  the  government  house,  and  administer 
to  them  the  oath  of  allegiance  to  the  British  crown.  Most  of 
them  willingly  took  this  oath,  but  Messrs.  Davenport,  Bost- 
wick,  Stone,  Abbot,  and  the  Dousman  brothers  refused  to  turn 
traitors  to  the  country  of  their  choice.  With  the  exception  of 
Michael  Dousman,  who  was  permitted  to  remain  neutral,  these 
men  were  immedlatel}'  sent  av/ay  with  the  soldiers,  and  were 
not  permitted  to  return  till  after  the  declaration  of  peace. 

The  services  of  Captain  Roberts  ai.d  his  men  in  thus  sur- 


THE   WAR   OF    l8l2. 


105 


prising  and  capturing  Fort  Mackinac,  were  highly  appreciated 
and  liberally  rewarded  by  the  British  government.  Prize 
money  to  the  amount  of  ten  thousand  pounds  was  divided 
among  the  volunteers  and  soldiers,  and  merchandise  and  arms 
distributed  to  the  Indians.  Sir  William  Johnson,  Esq.,  as  quoted 
in  "  Old  Mackinaw,"  tells  us  that,  in  1S36,  he  "  examined  the 
list  or  pay-roll  for  this  prize-money  ;  the  names  of  all  tliosc  who 
participated  in  the  taking  of  Fort  Mackinac  were  there  en- 
rolled, the  money  was  divided  according  to  rank,  and  each 
person  receipted  for  his  individual  share." 

Having  thus  easily  and  cheaply  succeeded  in  wresting 
from  the  American  people  their  most  important  western  mili- 
tary position,  the  English  at  once  set  about  the  work  of 
strengthening  themselves  in  their  new  possession.  Fearing 
that  they  would  not  be  able  to  hold  what  they  had  so  easily 
gained,  they  hastened  to  construct  a  fortification  on  the  crown- 
ing point  of  the  island,  which,  in  honor  of  their  reigning  sove- 
reign, they  dignified  with  the  title  of  Fort  George.  Tlic 
remains  of  this  old  fort,  now  called  Fort  Holmes,  may  still  be 
seen,  and,  from  its  historical  associations,  it  is  a  place  of  much 
intei'cst. 


io6 


OLD   AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


CHAPTER  VII. 


WAR    OF    lSl3,    CONCLUDED. 

DuKiNG  the  progress  of  the  war,  important  changes  took 
place  in  the  Territory  of  Michigan.  Fort  Dearborn,  on  the 
south-western  extremity  of  Lake  ^Michigan,  was  forgotten  ahke 
by  the  government  and  by  General  Hull,  until  about  the  middle 
of  July,  when  Captain  Ileald,  its  commander,  was  ordered  to 
"  dismantle  the  fort,  destroy  the  surplus  arms  and  ammunition 
and  withdraw  the  garrison  to  Detroit."  But  in  the  attempt  to 
execute  this  order  the  displeasure  of  the  Indians  was  incurred, 
and  the  whole  garrison  either  killed  or  taken  prisoners. 
Through  the  ignorance  and  cowardice  of  General  Hull,  the 
whole  territory  was  finally  surrendered  to  the  English  ;  but  the 
disgraceful  act  roused  such  a  feeling  of  indignation  in  the 
\7est,  that  every  man's  cheek  burned  with  shame,  and  ten 
thousand  men  sprang  to  arms,  eager  for  a  sight  of  the  foe. 
General  Harrison  was  placed  in  command,  and  the  tide  of 
victory  soon  turned  in  fa''  or  of  the  American  cause. 

On  the  tenth  day  of  September,  1S13,  Commod(jre  Perr^'^ 
gained  his  brilliant  victor}'  on  Lake  Erie.  This  again  opened 
the  way  to  the  territory  abandoned  by  Hull,  and  Harrison 
pressed  on  to  occupy  it.  The  British  army  retreated  before 
him  anil  he  entered  Detroit.  On  the  fifth  of  October,  a  decis- 
ive victory  was  gained  over  the  combined  British  and  Indian 
forces,  known  as  the  victory  of  the  Thames,  in  which  Tecum- 
seh,  the  great  Indian  war-chief,  was  slain.  The  death  of  this 
chief  broke  up  the  alliance  of  the  western  tribes  and  opened 
the  way  for  treaties  of  peace. 

So  far  as  the  North-west  was  concerned,  the  war  was  now 


THE   WAR   OF    lSl2,    CONCLUDED. 


107 


practically  closed,  yet  there  was  one  post  of  great  importance 
which  had  not  been  wrested  from  the  English.  That  post  was 
at  the  head  of  the  lakes  and  was  virtually  the  key  of  the  West. 
Active  steps  were  soon  taken  to  dispossess  the  English  of  this 
stronghold  and  drive  them  wholly  from  the  American  soil. 
Immediately  after  the  battle  of  the  Thames,  an  expedition  to 
the  upper  lakes  was  contemplated,  but,  unfortunately,  it  was 
prevented  by  the  non-arrival  of  two  schooners — the  Chippeway 
and  Ohio — which  had  been  sent  to  Cleveland  and  Bass  Islands 
for  provisions.  These  vessels  had  arrived  oft'  Maiden,  but  a 
storm  from  the  west  drove  them  to  the  lower  end  of  the  lake, 
where  they  were  stranded. 

Early  in  the  following  April,  1S14,  this  expedition  up 
Lake  Huron  was  again  proposed,  tlie  object  being  twofold — 
the  capture  of  Fort  Mackinac  and  the  destruction  of  certain 
vessels  which  it  was  said  the  English  were  building  in  Glou- 
cester, or  ^latchadash  Bay,  at  the  south-east  extremity  of  the 
lake.  But  this  plan  was  also  abandoned,  partly  from  a  want 
of  men,  partly  from  the  belief  that  Great  Britain  did  not,  as 
had  been  supposed,  intend  to  make  an  eflbrt  to  regain  the  com- 
mand of  the  upper  lakes,  and  partly  also  from  a  misunder- 
standing between  General  Harrison  and  Colonel  Croghan,  who 
commanded  at  Detroit,  on  the  one  liand,  and  the  Secretary  of 
War,  on  the  other.  No  sooner,  however,  had  the  plan  of 
April  been  abandoned  that  it  was  revived  again,  in  conse- 
quence of  new  information  of  the  establishment  at  Ivlatchadash 
Bay. 

In  obedience  to  orders  issued  upon  the  second  day  of  June, 
ample  preparations  were  soon  made.  A  squadron  was  fitted 
out,  consisting  of  the  United  States  sloops  of  W"ii-  Niagara  and 
Lawrence,  carrying  twenty  guns  each,  with  the  smidler  schoon- 
ers Caledonia,  Scorpion,  Tigress,  Detroit,  and  others,  and  a 
land  force  of  seven  hundred  and  fifty  men  placed  on  board. 
Commodore  Sinclair  was  the  naval  commander,  and  Lieut. 
Col.  Croghan,  a  ung  man  who  had  gallantly  and  success- 
fully defended  Sandusky  during  the  early  part  of  the  war,  had 


io8 


OLD  AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


■i    '.1 


charge  of  the  militia.  Ambrose  R.  Davenport  who,  two 
years  before  had  been  sent  away  from  Mackinac  on  account  of 
his  loyalty,  was  chosen  to  accompany  the  expedition  as  quar- 
termaster and  guide.  On  the  third  day  of  July,  when  all  was 
ready  and  fair  winds  had  proflcred  their  needed  assistance,  the 
sails  were  spread  and  the  fleet  sped  joyfully  on  its  course.  Dif- 
ficulties encountered  on  the  flats  of  Lake  St.  Clair,  and  the 
rapid  currei  of  the  river  prevented  the  squadron  from  reach- 
ing Lake  Huron  till  the  i3th.  High  hopes  of  success  and 
bright  anticipations  of  glory,  cheered  the  hearts  of  ofiicers  and 
men  as  that  fleet  of  sloops  and  schooners,  the  lai"gest  that  had 
ever  ventured  out  upon  the  b(  om  of  Lake  Huron,  proudly 
shaped  its  course  for  Matchadash  Bay.  Disappointment,  how- 
ever, awaited  them.  Every  possible  eflbrt  was  made  to  gain 
the  desired  bay  and  destroy  the  imaginary  vessels  there  build- 
ing, but  in  vain.  No  pilot  could  be  found  for  that  unfre- 
quented part  of  the  lake.  Islands  and  sunken  rocks  were  nu- 
merous and  threatened  destruction  to  the  fleet.  The  lake  was 
almost  continually  covered  with  an  impenetrable  fog  and  from 
the  time  already  consumed  in  the  fruitless  attempt,  the  provis- 
ions of  the  army  were  growing  short,  hence  that  part  of  the 
work  was  abandoned  and  the  squadron  pushed  on  toward  the 
head  waters  of  Huron. 

When  ncaring  the  place  of  destination,  a  council  was 
called  to  decide  whether  they  should  proceed  at  once  to  the 
capture  of  Fort  Mackinac,  or  first  repair  to  St.  Joseph's  and 
destroy  the  enemy's  works  at  that  point.  It  was  urged  that  an 
immediate  attack  upon  the  fort  was  policy,  inasmuch  as  the 
English,  having  had  no  intimation  of  their  approach,  were 
probably  without  Indian  allies,  and  unprepared  to  defend  the 
island  ;  that,  should  they  first  proceed  to  St.  Joseph's,  time 
would  thus  be  given  the  English  to  call  in  these  savage  auxili- 
aries, and  so  strengthen  themselves  that,  upon  their  return,  it 
would  be  diflicult,  if  not  impossible,  to  take  the  place.  But 
Sinclair  thought  that,  by  leaving  a  part  of  tlie  squadron  to 
cruise    round  the  island  during   his  absence,  this  could  be   j^re- 


THE   WAR   OF    lSl3,    CONCLUDED. 


109 


vented ;  hence,  in  spite  of  salutary  advice  from  those  who 
knew  the  Indian  character  far  better  than  themselves,  it  was 
agreed  between  the  naval  and  military  commanders  to  proceed 
at  once  to  St.  Joseph's.  This  was  a  fatal  error.  As  well  at- 
tempt to  prevent  insects  from  flying  through  the  air  by  holding 
up  the  hand  as  to  think  of  hindering  Indians  in  their  approach 
to  the  island  with  two  or  three  gun  boats  anchored  in  as  many 
different  places  about  it. 

On  the  20th  of  July,  they  arrived  at  St.  Joseph's  and  found 
the  British  establishment  at  that  jDoint  deserted.  This  they 
burned,  but  left  untouched  the  town  and  North-West  Com- 
pany's storehouses.  While  windbound  at  this  j^oint,  Sinclair 
captured  the  North-West  Company's  schooner  ^Mink,  from 
Mackinac  to  St.  Mary's  with  a  cargo  of  flour,  and  by  this 
means  received  intelligence  that  the  SL-hooner  Perseverance- 
was  lying  above  the  Falls  of  St.  Mary,  at  the  foot  of  Lake 
Superior,  in  waiting  to  transport  the  Mink's  cargo  to  Fort  Wil- 
liams. 

Upon  the  receipt  of  this  information,  he  dispatched  Lieut. 
Turner,  an  active  and  enterprising  officer,  to  capture  her,  and, 
if  possible,  get  her  down  the  falls.  Col.  Croghan  attached 
Major  Ho'-'-^s  with  a  party  of  regulars  to  cooperate  in  the  ex- 
pedition, in  which  the  capture  of  St.  Mary's  was  included. 
The  following  ofliL  ial  report  of  Lieut.  Turner  to  Sinclair  will 
give  the  reader  a  clear  idea  of  what  was  eflccted  by  this  move- 
ment. It  is  dated  U.  S.  Schooner  Scorpion,  ofl'  Michilimacki- 
nac,  July  2§th,  1814: 

"  Sir  :  I  have  the  honor  to  inform  you,  that  agreeable  to 
your  orders  of  the  22d  instant,  I  proceeded  on  the  expedition 
to  Lake  Superior  with  the  launches.  I  rowed  night  and  day  ; 
but  having  a  distance  of  of  sixty  miles,  against  a  strong  cur- 
rent, information  had  reached  the  enemy  at  St.  Mary's  of  our 
approach  about  two  hours  before  I  arrived  at  that  place,  car- 
ried by  Indians  in  their  light  canoes ;  several  of  whom  I 
chased,    and  by   firing  on  them    and  killing  some,    prevented 


.1 

all 

■  it 


■'  •'li^ 


no 


OLD    AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


their  purposes  ;  some  I  captured  and  kept  prisoners  until  my 
arrival,  otliers  escaped.  The  force  under  Major  Holmes  pre- 
vented anything  like  resistance  at  the  fort,  the  enemy  with 
their  Indians  carrying  with  them  all  the  light  valuable  articles, 
peltry,  clothes,  &c.  I  proceeded  across  the  strait  of  Lake 
Superior  without  a  moment's  delay  ;  and  on  my  appearance, 
the  enemy  finding  they  could  not  get  oft'  with  the  vessel  I  was 
in  quest  of,  set  fire  to  her  in  several  places,  scuttled,  and  left 
her.  I  succeeded  in  boarding  her,  and  by  considerable  exer- 
tions extinguished  the  flames,  and  secured  her  from  sinking.  I 
then  stripped  her  and  prepared  for  getting  her  down  the  falls. 
Adverse  winds  prevented  my  attempting  the  falls  until  the 
26th,  when  every  possible  eflbrt  was  used,  but  I  am  sorry  to 
say  without  success,  to  get  her  over  in  safety.  The  fall  in 
three-quarters  of  a  mile  is  forty-five  feet,  and  the  channel  very 
rocky  ;  the  current  runs  from  twenty  to  thirty  knots,  and  in 
one  place  there  is  a  perpendicular  leap  of  ten  feet  between 
three  rocks  ;  here  she  bilged,  but  was  brought  down  so  rap- 
idly that  we  succeeded  in  running  her  on  shore  below  the  rap- 
ids before  she  filled,  and  burned  her.  She  was  a  fiu'-i  new 
schooner,  upwards  of  100  tons,  called  the  Perseverance,  and 
will  be  a  severe  loss  to  the  North-West  Company.  Had  I 
succeeded  in  getting  her  safe,  I  could  have  loaded  her  to  ad- 
vantage from  the  enemy's  storehouses.  I  have,  however, 
brought  down  four  captured  boats  loaded  with  Indian  goods  to 
a  considerable  amount ;  the  balance  contained  in  four  large  and 
two  small  storehouses  were  destroyed,  amounting  in  value 
from  fifty  to  one  hundred  thousand  dollars.  All  private  prop- 
erty was,  according  to  your  orders,  respected.  The  ofiicers 
and  men  under  my  command  1  ^haved  with  great  activity  and 
zeal,  particularly  midshipman  Svvartwout. 

"  I  have  the  honor  to  be,  sir,  with  great  respect,  your  obe- 
dient servant, 

"  Daniel  Turner." 

On  the  return  of  the  launches  to  St.  Joseph's,  the  squadron 
proceeded  to  Mackinac,  where  it  arrived  on  the  26th.     During 


oj 
b( 
fa 

h( 


iUiili 


THE    WAR    OF    lSl2,    CONCLUDED. 


Ill 


the  time  that  had  now  ehipsed  since  tlie  first  appearance  of  the 
fleet  ofl'  Ught-housc  point,  Colonel  McDonall,  British  com- 
mander at  Mackinac,  had  not  been  disinclined  to  make  the 
most  of  the  opportunity  thus  afforded  liim  for  strengthening 
his  position.  Everything  had  been  put  in  the  most  perfect 
order  ;  weak  points  in  the  fortifications  had  been  strengthened 
and  such  aid  as  the  country  afforded  had  been  summoned  to 
his  assistance.  Nor  was  this  aid  inconsiderable.  Under  the 
unfortunate  circumstances  attending  the  attack,  more  efficient 
auxiliaries  could  not  have  been  found  than  those  very  savages 
who,  during  that  brief  period  of  delay,  had  gathered  in  large 
numbers  upon  the  island.  Batteries  had  been  planted  at  vari- 
ous places  on  the  heights  which  best  commanded  the  ap- 
proaches to  the  island.  One  was  situated  on  the  height  over- 
looking the  old  distillery,  another  upon  the  high  jjoint  just 
west  of  the  fort,  and  others  alon  the  ridge  back  of  the  pres- 
ent town  from  the  fort  to  Robinson's  Folly.  Thus  that  officer, 
though  he  had  but  few  men  comparatively  in  command,  and 
must  liave  surrendered  at  once  had  an  immediate  attack  been 
made  upon  him,  was  able,  with  the  advantage  he  had  now 
gained,  to  withstand  a  strong  force. 

Various  feelings  agitated  the  inhabitants  of  the  place  as 
the  squadron  neared  the  island.  Some  had  two  years  before 
parted  with  friends  with  whom  they  now  hoped  to  be  rc-united, 
while  others,  who  had  turned  traitor  to  the  American  flag, 
justly  feared  the  gallows  should  the  approaching  expedition 
succeed  in  taking  the  fort. 

Sinclair  puslicd  up  as  near  to  the  channel  between  Round 
and  Mackinac  islands  as  he  dared  on  account  of  the  batteries 
of  the  enemy,  and  as  close  to  the  eastern  extremity  of  Round 
Island  as  safety  would  ^  ormit,  and  anchored.  Scarcely,  how- 
ever, had  the  anchors  reached  the  bottom  when  the  English 
opened  a  brisk  fire  upon  him,  and  though  he  imagined  himself 
beyond  the  reach  of  harm  from  that  source,  the  balls  that  were 
falling  around  him  and  whizzing  over  his  head  told  him  that 
he   must   take    a    more   resjjcctful   distance   or   be   destroyed. 


m 


w 


'■>} 


1 


^{  . 


112 


OLD    AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


When  the  licet  had  been  removed  farther  awav  toward  Bois 
Bhinc,  out  of  the  reach  of  the  enemy's  guns,  Croghan  (Hs- 
patchcd  an  officer  with  a  number  of  men,  and  Mr.  Davenport 
as  guide,  to  Round  Island,  to  reconnoitre  the  enemy's  position 
and  if  possible  find  some  advantageous  point  at  which  to  erect 
a  battery.  Having  landed,  the  party  j^rocceded  cautiously 
across  the  island  until  they  came  to  the  point  nearest  Mackinac 
Island,  when  they  began  their  return.  They  had  selected,  as 
the  most  advantageous  position  for  a  battery,  a  point  just  above 
the  old  lime-kiln  seen  from  this  village,  which  is  the  crowning 
point  of  the  island.  No  sooner,  however,  had  the  movement 
been  discovered  by  the  British  than  two  or  three  hundred  birch 
bark  canoes,  with  several  batteaux  and  other  boats,  were 
launched,  and  a  large  party  of  Indians  started  in  pursuit. 
They  were  not  long  in  gaining  the  island.  The  party,  suspi- 
cious of  the  apjoroach  of  the  Indians,  hastened  back  toward 
their  boat ;  but  the  island  was  just  at  that  time  covered  with  a 
plentiful  crop  of  raspberries,  and  the  men,  ignorant  of  the 
foe,  loitered  somewhat,  in  spite  of  all  that  could  be  said  to 
them,  \\nien  they  reached  their  boat,  the  Indians  could  be 
seen  skulking  through«the  woods  after  them,  and  one  of  their 
number,  a  Frenchman,  who  had  been  more  heedless  than  the 
rest,  had  been  captured.  They  now  sprang  into  their  boat, 
and,  we  may  believe,  pushed  oft'  with  as  much  dispatch  as 
possible  ;  Init  at  a  short  distance  from  the  beach,  scarcely  out 
of  reach  of  ♦ihc  enemy's  fire,  the  boat  sti'uck  a  rock  which  was 
just  beneath  the  surface  of  the  water,  and  swung  around  as 
tiiough  upon  a  pivot.  At  this  the  savages,  who  were  fast 
emerging  from  the  thickets  and  approaching  the  beach,  fired 
upon  them.  The  fire  was  returned,  but  without  execution  on 
either  side.  Fearing  that  the  Indians  upon  arriving  at  the 
point  from  v/hich  they  had  embarked  would  be  able  to  reach 
them,  the  officer  ordered  the  soldiers  to  cease  firing  and  en- 
deavor to  clear  the  boat  from  the  rock.  This  they  accom- 
plished with  a  little  exertion,  and  returned  without  further 
mishap  to  the  fleet. 


Uk 


THE  WAR   OF    l8l2,    CONCLUDED. 


113 


Upon  learning  that  one  of  the  party  sent  out  had  been 
captured  by  the  Indians,  Sinchiir  ordered  a  small  vessel  of  one 
gun  to  pass  round  to  the  farther  side  of  the  island,  that  if  pos- 
sible he  inight  be  re-taken.  A  strong  wind  was  blowing  from 
the  west,  against  which  the  little  bark  must  make  her  way 
through  the  narrow  channel  that  separates  Round  and  Bois 
Blanc  islands  ;  hence,  the  task  was  difficult.  She  had  scarcely 
laid  her  course  when  the  beach  was  thronged  with  savages, 
and  as  often  as  she  came  in  i-each,  in  beating  through  this 
channel,  these  savages  poured  upon  her  a  shower  of  musket 
balls.  This  compliment  was  returned  with  much  spirit,  but, 
aside  from  the  injury  done  the  vessel,  neither  party  sufiered 
loss. 

The  Indians  now  began  their  return  to  Mackinac  with 
their  victim,  chanting  the  death-dirge.  A  shot  was  fired  at 
them  from  the  Lawrence,  (anchored  west  of  Round  Island,) 
but  without  effect.  As  they  neared  the  island,  the  Indians  that 
had  remained  came  down  to  meet  them,  and  the  prisoner  would 
have  been  killed  and  feasted  upon  by  his  inhuman  captors,  had 
not  the  British  commander  sent  a  strong  guard  of  soldiers  and 
rescued  him,  the  moment  the  canoes  touched  the  beach. 

During  the  next  day,  as  tlie  Lawrence  was  cruising  about 
the  island,  a  thick  fog  suddenly  came  down,  and  enveloped  all 
in  obscurity.  When,  later  in  the  same  day,'this  fog  lifted,  her 
commander  found  that  he  was  within  a  very  short  distance  of 
the  south-west  part  of  the  island,  with  scarcely  any  wind,  and 
within  range  of  the  enemy's  guns.  A  vigorous  fire  was  opened 
upon  him  from  the  battery  near  the  west  end  of  the  fort,  luit 
with  such  want  of  skill  that  he  suffered  no  damage  from  it. 
He  fired  a  single  shot  in  return,  but  could  not  elevate  his  guns 
sufiicicntly  to  batter  the  walls  of  the  fort.  Unfavorable  vveaiher 
prevented  furtlier  operations  for  several  days. 

Col.    Croghan,   having    now    learned    something   of  the 

strength  o(  the  enemy's  fortifications,  and  of  the  number  and 

spirit  of  the  savage  allies  wliich  the  English  had  called  to  their 

assistance,  despaired  of  being  able  to  take  the  place  by  storm 

8 


I 


"4 


OLD   AND    NEW   MACKINAC. 


m^ 


Ll      f 


II 


as  he  had  hojicd.  He  therefore  (Ictermined  to  cfleet  a  hinding 
and  establish  himself  on  some  favorable  position,  whence  he 
might  annoy  the  enemy  by  gradual  and  slow  approaches,  imdcr 
cover  of  his  artillery,  which  he  knew  to  be  superior  to  that  of 
the  foe.  This  he  desired  to  attempt  on  the  south-western  side 
of  the  island,  not  far  from  that  part  of  the  present  village 
known  as  Shanty  Town.  The  shore  there  was  unobstructed, 
and  the  ascent  to  the  high  table  land  on  which  stands  the  fort 
comparatively  easy ;  there  were  no  coverts  near,  from  which 
the  savages  might  pour  upon  them  a  deadly  fire  ;  there  was  no 
thick  undergrowth  to  be  penetrated,  in  which  might  be  laid  the 
murderous  ambuscade.  If  any  attack  should  be  made  upon 
them  on  their  way  from  the  place  of  landing  to  the  fort,  it  must 
be  in  an  open  field  and  with  a  chance  for  a  fair  fight,  which 
Col.  Croghan  knew  to  be  contrary  to  every  principle  of  Indian 
warfare. 

But  there  was  one  objection  which  Sinclair  urged  against 
a  disembarkation  at  this  point.  The  positions  Avhich  his  ves- 
sels would  be  obliged  to  take  in  order  to  effect  it,  would  expose 
them  to  the  fire  of  the  fort,  while  he  could  not  elevate  his  guns 
sufficiently  to  do  the  enemy  any  injury.  Hence  the  idea  was 
abandoned,  and  it  was  decided  to  land  on  the  north-west  side 
of  the  island,  where  Captain  Roberts  had  landed  two  years 
before. 

A  more  unfortunate  movement  than  this  could  not  possibly 
have  been  made.  The  island,  which  is  about  three  miles  in 
diameter,  is  mostly  covered  with  an  almost  impervious  growth 
of  small  trees.  A  better  Indian  battle-field  could  not  be  found 
than  what  might  be  selected  even  to-day  on  this  island.  But 
if  we  step  back  across  the  chasm  of  more  than  half  a  century, 
and  view  it  as  it  was  when  that  little  fleet  was  hovering  around 
its  beach  in  search  of  a  safe  and  convenient  landing,  we  shall 
see  a  very  material  change  in  it,  as  a  whole,  and  that  change 
we  shall  find  to  be  favorable  to  the  purposes  of  savage  warfare. 
We  cannot  suppose  that  the  axe  has  lain  idle  for  more  than 
fifty  years,  that  there  has  been  no  multiplication  and  enlargc- 


lymi^ 


ite 


THE   WAR   OF    l8l2,   CONCLUDED. 


"5 


mcnt  of  clearings,  no  thinning  out  of  dense  forests,  no  widen- 
ing of  Indian  trails  into  wagon  roads.  Indeed,  authentic  in- 
formation, as  well  as  reason,  tells  us  that  at  that  time  the 
island  was  little  less  than  a  labyrinth.  The  mass  of  vegetation 
which  everywhere  covered  it  was  intersected  by  foot-paths  and 
occasional  cart  roads,  but  these  were  ill  adapted  to  the  wants 
of  even  a  small  army  on  the  march.  Tlie  clearings  were  small, 
and  could  serve  only  as  so  many  slaughter  pens,  in  which  the 
American  troops  might  be  butchered  by  bloodthirsty  and 
unprincipled  barbarians,  concealed  in  the  adjacent  thickets. 
Who  does  not  see  that,  on  such  ground,  every  Indian  was  more 
than  a  match  for  the  best  disciplined  soldier,  and  that  the  large 
number  of  these  savage  auxiliaries  which  the  Britisli  com- 
mander had  been  able  to  collect  during  the  absence  of  the  fleet 
was  far  superior  to  any  equal  reinforcement  of  regular  troops 
he  could  have  received !  By  thus  landing  at  a  point  nearly 
opposite  the  fort,  Col.  Croghan  was  compelled,  amidst  these 
embarrassing  obstacles,  to  traverse  nearly  the  whole  width  of 
the  island  in  order  to  reach  the  British  position.  It  was  a  for- 
lorn hope.  No  superiority  of  generalship  could  eflect  against 
such  obstacles  ;  no  perfection  of  military  discipline  could  coun- 
tei'balance  these  dense  thickets,  swarming  with  fiends  in  human 
form. 

Col.  Croghan  was  too  well  acquainted  with  Indian  military 
tactics,  and  also  with  that  dastardly  spirit  of  cowardice  which 
for  years  had  made  the  English  the  instigators  of  the  most 
atrocious  and  bloody  deeds  that  had  ever  stained  the  character 
of  a  savage,  to  be  wholly  unaware  of  the  dangers  before  him. 
But,  nothing  daunted  by  these  difficulties,  this  gallant  officer 
prepared  to  disembark  his  forces,  hoping  to  gain  the  clearing 
near  the  landing,  and  there  fortify  himself,  thus  compelling  the 
British  to  attack  him  in  his  stronghold. 

On  the  4th  of  August  the  vessels  of  the  fleet  were  ranged 
in  line,  at  the  distance  of  three  hundred  yards  from  the  beach, 
and  the  small  boats  made  ready  to  carry  the  devoted  army  to 
the  island.     Scarcely,   however,   had  the  work  of  disembark- 


\iG 


OLD    AND   NEW    MACKINAC. 


w 

-5 


ation  l)cj:;un,  when  the  adjacent  thickets  were  observed  to  be 
full  of  savages,  plumed  and  painted  for  the  strife.  When  all 
was  ready,  and  the  word  of  command  had  been  spoken,  they 
moved  toward  the  landing  with  measured  dip  of  the  oar,  and 
meanwhile  a  brisk  cannonading  cleared  the  thickets  of  their 
lurking  foes.  Under  cover  of  the  guns  the  landing  was  easily 
etlected,  and  the  best  possible  arrangement  of  the  troops  made, 
preparatory  to  the  marching: 

While  the  American  squadron  had  been  cruising  about  the 
island,  the  English  had  taken  every  precaution  to  secure  them- 
selves against  surprise.  Guards  had  been  stationed  at  short 
intervals  around  the  entire  island,  and  every  road  and  bridle 
path  intersecting  the  island  had,  with  one  exception,  been 
eftectually  blockaded.  The  road  running  from  the  rear  gate 
of  the  fort  back  to  Early's  (then  M.  Dousman's)  farm  was 
alone  left  free.  As  soon  as  it  became  evident  that  the  Ameri- 
cans intended  to  eflect  a  landing,  the  whole  Indian  force,  with 
the  Canadians  and  most  of  the  soldiers,  moved  back  to  that 
part  of  the  island  to  resist  the  attempt. 

After  we  have  passed  through  the  gate  on  our  way  to 
Early's  farm-house,  we  see  upon  our  left  an  orchard  through 
which  runs  a  little  ridge,  crossing  the  road  at  right  angles. 
This  ridge,  at  the  time  of  which  we  write,  formed  the  bound- 
arv  line  of  the  clearing  on  the  east.  North  and  west  from  the 
house  was  a  swamp,  since  converted  into  a  meadow.  Upon 
the  south  and  south-west  the  clearing  was  the  same  as  now, 
only  more  circumscribed.  The  British  troops  were  posted  in 
the  edge  of  the  woods  south  from  the  road,  and  behind  the 
elevation  mentioned,  while  in  the  road,  on  the  ridge,  a  battery 
was  planted.  To  the  north  and  south  of  the  clearing,  the 
Indians,  with  an  occasional  vagabond  trader  more  brutal  even 
than  themselves,  lay  concealed  in  large  numbers. 

Colonel  Croghan,  having  quickly  formed  his  line,  had 
advanced  to  the  edge  of  the  clearing,  or  farm,  when  intelli- 
gence reached  him  that  the  enemy  was  in  waiting  for  him,  and 
ready  to  dispute  his  progress.     In    a   few    seconds    after   he 


iUMi 


THE   WATl    OF    l8l2,    CONCLUDED. 


iiy 


received  this  information,  a  fire  was  opened  upon  him  from  the 
enemy's  battery,  lie  now  carefully  surveyed  the  clearing 
before  him,  and  became  convinced  that  the  enemy's  position 
was  well  selected,  but,  by  a  vigorous  movement,  he  hoped  to 
outflank  him  and  gain  his  rear..  Accordingly,  he  decided  to 
change  his  own  position,  which  was  then  "  two  lines,  the 
militia  forming  the  front,"  and  advance,  Major  Holmes'  battal- 
ion of  regulars  on  the  right  of  the  militia.  This  movemont 
was  immediately  ordered,  and,  to  encourage  his  men,  Major 
Holmes  led  them  in  person  ;  but  while  gallantly  pressing  on 
to  the  charge,  a  destructive  fire  was  opened  by  some  Indians 
concealed  in  a  hicket  near  the  American  right,  and  the  brave 
Major  Itolmes  fell,  mortally  wounded.  Captain  Desha,  the 
officer  next  in  rank,  also  received  a  very  severe,  though  not 
fatal,  wound.  The  battalion  having  now  lost  the  services  of 
its  most  valuable  ofiicers,  fell  into  confusion,  from  which  the 
best  exertions  of  its  remaining  officers  were  not  able  to 
recover  it. 

Finding  it  impossible  to  gain  th»  enemy's  left:,  owing  to 
the  impenetrable  thickness  of  the  woods,  a  charge  was  ordered 
to  be  made  by  the  regulars  immediately  against  the  front. 
This  charge,  though  made  in  some  confusion,  served  to  drive 
the  enemy  back  into  the  woods,  whence  an  annoying  fire  was 
kept  up  by  the  Indians.  Lieutenant  Morgan  was  now  ordered 
up  with  a  light  piece,  to  assist  the  left,  which  at  this  time  was 
particularly  galled,  and  the  excellent  service  of  this  piece 
forced  the  enemy  to  retire  to  a  greater  distance. 

Croghan  had  now  reached  the  point  at  which  he  had  hoped 
to  fortify  himself,  and  thence  harass  the  enemy  at  pleasure,  but 
he  found  it  by  no  means  tenable  on  account  of  the  thickets  and 
ravines  surrounding  it.  He  therefore  determined  no  longer  to 
expose  his  troops  to  the  fire  of  an  enemy  having  every  advan- 
tage wiiich  could  be  obtained  from  numbers  and  a  knowledge 
of  the  position,  and  ordered  an  immediate  retreat  to  the  place 
of  landing.  When  the  troops  had  regained  the  shipping  the 
fleet  again  moved  round  towards  Bois  Blanc  and  anchored. 


ii8 


OLD   AND    NEW   MA-'KINAC. 


While  the  forces  were  preparhig  to  disembark,  previous 
to  the  engagement,  Mr.  Davenport  had  urged  !Major  Holmes 
to  exchange  his  uniform  for  a  common  suit,  stating  that  the 
Indians  would  otherwise  certainly  make  a  mark  of  him,  but 
Holme's  replied  that  his  uniform  was  made  to  wear,  and  he  in- 
tended to  wear  it,  adding  that  if  it  was  his  day  to  fall  he  was 
willing.  The  sequel  showed  how  unwise  he  was  in  not  listen- 
ing to  this  advice.  The  party  of  Indians  posted  on  the  right 
were  Winnebagoes  from  Green  Bay — the  most  savage  and 
cruel  of  all  the  British  allies,  and  they,  indeed,  did  make  a 
mark  of  him.  Five  well-aimed  bullets  simultaneously  entered 
his  breast,  and  he  expired  almost  instantly.  Captain  Desha 
also  felt  the  fury  of  these  savages,  but  fortunately  escaped  with 
his  life.  Captain  Vanhorn  and  Lieutenant  Jackson,  both  brave, 
intrepid  young  men,  also  fell  mortally  wounded  at  the  head  of 
their  respective  commands.  Twelve  privates  were  killed,  six 
sergeants,  three  corporals,  one  musician,  and  twenty-eight  pri- 
vates wounded,  and  two  privates  missing. 

The  most  shocking  barbarities  were  practised  on  the  bodies 
of  the  slain.  They  were  literally  cut  to  j^ieccs  by  their  savage 
conquerors.  Our  informant  I'emembers  seeing  the  Indians 
come  to  the  fort  after  the  engageinent,  some  with  a  hand,  some 
with  a  head,  and  some  with  a  foot  or  limb,  and  it  is  officially 
stated  by  Sinclair,  upon  the  testimony'  of  two  ladies,  (Mrs.  Da- 
venport and  Mrs.  John  Dousman,)  who  were  present  and  wit- 
nessed it,  that  the  hearts  and  livers  of  these  unfortunate  men  were 
taken  out,  and  "  actually  cooked  and  feasted  on — and  that,  too, 
in  the  quarters  of  the  British  officers,  sanctioned  by  Colonel 
McDonall — by  the  savages."  Fragments  of  these  bodies  were 
taken  to  the  Indian  graveyard  west  of  the  village  and  placed  on 
poles  over  the  graves,  where  they  remained  for  ten  clays.  Fortu- 
nately, however,  the  body  of  Major  Holmes,  which,  by  neglect  of 
the  soldiers  in  whose  hands  it  had  been  placed,  had  been  left  on 
the  field — escaped  the  sad  fate  of  the  others.  During  the 
action  these  men  concealed  the  body  by  covering  it  with  rails 
and  leaves,  so  that  the  Indians  did  not  find  it.     It  liad,  how- 


THE    WAR    OF    lSl2,    CONXLUDED. 


119 


ever,  been  stripped,  but  in  this  case  the  British  commander 
acted  with  promptness  and  humaniU,  threatening  to  hang  the 
jDcrpetrators,  should  they  be  found  out,  if  the  articles  taken 
were  not  immediately  returned.  This  threu  soon  brought  the 
clothes,  watch,  papers,  etc.,  which  had  been  stolen  by  two 
Fi'enchmen,  into  his  possession,  and  with  the  1  ody  they  were 
given  up  to  the  Americans. 

Thus,  in  loss  and  disgrace,  ended  the  effort  to  wrest  Fort 
Mackinac  and  the  island  upon  which  it  stands  from  the  Eng- 
glish.     When  the  fleet  first  appeared  ofF  Light  House  Point 
there  was  but  a  single  company  of  troops  In  the  fort,  and  but 
few,  if  any,  Indian  auxiliaries  upon  the  island,  and  had  Colonel 
Croghan  at  once  demanded  a  surrender  instead  of  at  first  going 
to  St.  Joseph's,  the  po.it  vvould  doubtless  have  passed  back  into 
the  hands  of  the  Americans  without  shedding  of  blood,  and  with 
as  little  parley  as,  two  years  before,  it  had  passed  into  the  hands 
of  the  English.     Oi..  had  a  prompt  and  willing  surrender  been 
refused,  a  vigorous  attack  must  have  quickly  reduced  the  gar- 
rison to  the  necessity  of  yielding,  as  the  American  force  was 
greatly  superior  to  the  English.      But  the  delay  was  pregnant 
with  disaster  and  disgrace.     Each  moment  in  which  the  enemy 
was  permitted  to  strengthen  his  defences  and  increase  his  num- 
bers, diminished   fearfully  the  chances  of  success.     Even  after 
the  return,  had  the  landing  been  made  at  the  point  desired  by 
Colonel   Crogiian,  tlefeat  might  have  been  avoided,  as  under 
those  circumstances  the  Indian  allies  would   have  been  nearly 
useless  ;  but  as  it  was  defeat  was  almost  a  necessity.     An  army 
of  iron  men  could  scarcely  have  traversed  the  whole  breadth  of 
this  island  under  the  rapid  and  continuous  shower  of  musket 
balls  which  would  have  been  poured  upon  them,  without  fal- 
tering and  falling  into  confusion. 

Having  failed  in  the  reduction  of  Fort  Mackinac,  which 
vSinclair  denominated  a  "  perfect  Gibraltar,"  measures  were 
now  taken  to  starve  it  into  submission,  by  cutting  oft'  its  sup- 
plies. The  troops,  with  the  exception  of  three  companies,  were 
dispatched  in  two  vessels  to  join    General  Brown  on  the  Ni- 


lii 


jsm:^ 


I20 


OLD   AND   NEW    MACKINAC. 


agara,  and  the  remainder  of  the  squadroii,  a  pilot  having  been 
now  secured,  directed  its  course  to  the  east  side  of  the  hike,  to 
break  up  any  establishments  which  the  enemy  might  liave  in 
that  quarter.  While  the  Americans  were  masters  of  Lake 
Erie,  there  were  only  two  practicable  lines  of  communication 
between  the  remote  garrison  of  Fort  Mackinac  and  the  lower 
country.  The  first  of  these  was  with  Montreal  by  way  of  the 
Ottawa,  Lake  Nippising,  and  French  River,  and  the  second 
with  York  by  means  of  Lake  wSimcoc  and  the  Nautauwasaga 
River.  ILaving  learned  that  the  fi'.st  of  these  communications 
was  impracticable  at  that  season  of  the  year  on  account  of  the 
marshy  state  of  the  portages,  they  proceeded  to  the  mouth  of 
the  Nautauwasaga,  in  hopes  of  finding  the  enemy's  schooner 
Nancy,  which  was  thought  to  be  in  that  quarter.  On  the  thir- 
teenth of  August  the  fleet  anchored  ofl^"  the  mouth  of  that  river, 
and  the  troops  were  quickly  disembarked  for  the  purpose  of 
fixing  a  camp  on  the  peninsula  formed  by  th'"  river  and  the 
lake.  On  reconnoitcring  the  position  the  scl  ooner  was  discov- 
ered in  the  river,  a  few  hundred  yards  above,  under  cover  of  a 
block-house  erected  on  a  commanding  situation  on  the  oppo- 
site shore.  On  the  following  morning  a  fire  was  opened  by 
the  shipping  upon  the  block-house,  but  w".n  little  cficct,  owing 
to  a  thin  wood  which  intervened  and  obscured  the  view.  But 
about  twelve  o'clock  two  howitzers  were  landed,  and,  placed 
within  a  few  hundred  yards  of  the  block-house,  commenced 
throwine:  shells.  Li  a  few  minutes  one  of  these  shells  burst  in 
the  block-house  and  shortly  after  blew  up  the  magazine,  allow- 
ing the  enemy  scarcely  time  to  make  his  escape.  The  explo- 
sion of  the  magazine  set  fire  to  a  train  which  had  been  laid  for 
the  destruction  of  the  vessel,  and  in  a  few  minutes  she  was  en- 
veloped in  flames,  and  her  valuable  c;  rgo,  consisting  of  several 
hundred  barrels  of  provisions,  intended  as  a  six  mouths'  supply 
for  the  garrison  at  Mackinac,  was  entirely  consumed. 

Colonel  Croghan  did  not  think  it  advisable  to  fortify  and 
garrison  Nautauwasaga,  because  the  communication  from  York 
was  so  short  and  convenient  that  any  force  letl  there  might  be 


H' 


THE   WAR    OF    lSl3,    CONCLUDED. 


131 


easily  cut  oft' during  the  winter,  hence  Sinchxir  left  the  Tigress 
and  Scorpion  to  blockade  it  closely  until  the  season  should  be- 
come too  boisterous  for  boat  transportation,  and  the  remainder 
of  the  squadron  returned  to  Detroit. 

But  this  blockade,  which,  had  it  been  properly  enforced, 
must  speedily  have  made  a  bloodless  conquest  of  Mackinac, 
was  soon  brought  to  an  end  by  the  capture  of  both  these 
schooners. 

After  the  destruction  of  the  Nancy,  her  captain,  with  sev- 
eral of  his  men,  at  once  repaired  to  Fort  Mackinac  to  commu- 
nicate the  news  of  the  loss  to  Colonel  McDonall  and  the  little 
garrison  under  his  command.  Under  the  circumstances,  it  was 
unwelcome  news  indeed.  Provisions  were  already  getting  low  ; 
a  single  loaf  of  bread  was  worth  one  dollar  and  a  half,  the  men 
were  subsisting  on  half  rations,  and  had  already  been  reduced 
to  the  necessity  of  killing  several  horses  to  ward  oft'  starvation. 
And  worse  than  all,  a  long  and  dreary  winter  was  near  at  hand, 
portending,  under  the  circumstances,  nothing  but  death  from 
starvation.  Something  must  be  done,  and  accordingly  an  ex- 
pedition was  at  once  fitted  out  by  Colonel  McDonall,  consist- 
ing of  a  force  of  a  hundred  and  fifty  sailors  and  soldiers,  and 
two  hundred  and  fifty  Indians,  in  open  boats,  to  break  the 
blockad^e  if  possible.  Wficn  this  party  had  arrived  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  American  vessels,  the  Tigress,  which  for  several 
days  had  been  separated  from  the  Scorjjion,  was  surprised  and 
boarded  during  the  night  of  September  third,  it  being  very  dark, 
and  after  a  desperate  hand  to  hand  struggle,  in  which  some 
were  killed  and  several  wounded  was  captured.  During  the 
contest  an  attempt  was  made  by  the  Americans  to  destroy  the 
signal-book,  but,  unfortunately,  without  success,  and  by  the  aid 
of  this  book  the  Tigress,  now  manned  by  English  officers  and 
men,  surprised  and  captured  the  Scorpion  on  the  morning  of 
the  sixth,  at  dawn  of  day.  This  was  a  finishing  stroke  to  the 
ill-fated  enterprise,  and  Mackinac  was  left  secure  in  the  hands 
of  the  English  until  peace  was  declared. 


123 


OLD   AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


During  the  following  winter,  1814-15,  peace  was  conclud- 
ed between  the  belligerent  nations,  and  in  the  spring  the  post 
was  evacuated  by  the  English,  and  a  company  of  American 
troops  under  Colonel  Chambers,  took  peaceable  possession. 


MACKINAC    ISLAND. 


123 


d- 

)St 

an 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


MACKINAC    ISLAND. 

This  island,  as  far  back  as  we  have  any  account  of  it,  has 
been  a  place  of  great  interest.  It  received  its  original  name 
from  the  Indians.  An  old  legend  relates  that  a  large  number 
of  these  people  were  once  assembled  at  Point  St.  Ignace  and, 
while  intently  gazing  at  the  rising  of  the  sun,  during  the 
Great  INIanitou,  or  Februaiy  Moon,  they  beheld  the  island 
suddenly  rise  up  from  the  water,  assuming-  its  present  form. 
From  the  point  of  observation,  it  bore  a  fancied  resemblance 
to  the  back  of  a  huge  turtle,  hence  they  gave  it  the  name 
Moe'che'ne'mock'e'nung,  which  means  a  great  turtle.  This 
name,  when  put  into  a  French  dress,  became  Michilimackinac. 
From  the  island  it  i^assed  to  the  adjacent  points.  In  some 
connections  in  the  early  history,  the  name  is  apnlied  to  the 
section  as  a  whole  ;  in  others,  to  the  jooint  north  of  die  Straits  ; 
but  more  frequently,  to  that  soui'  of  the  Straits  now  known 
as  Old  Alackinac.  Tin  1  m  is  now  obsolete,  except  as  ap- 
plied to  the  county  which  lies  immediately  north  of  the  Straits 
in  which  the  island  is  included.  The  island  has  now  taken 
upon  itself  the  name  of  Mackinac. 

Indian  mythology  makes  this  island  the  home  of  the  Giant 
Fairies,  hence  the  Indians  have  always  regarded  it  with  a 
species  of  veneration.  The  day  is  still  within  the  memory  of 
many  individuals  now  living  on  the  island  when  the  heathen 
Indians,  in  passing  to  and  fro  by  its  shores,  made  offerings  of 
tobacco  and  other  articles  to  the  these  Great  Spirits  to  pro^iiti- 
ate  their  good  will.  These  fairies,  we  are  told,  had  a  subter- 
ranean abode  under  the  island,  the  entrance  to  which  was  near 


124 


OLD    AND    NEW   MACKINAC. 


the  base  of  the  hill,  just  below  the  present  southern  gate  of  the 
fort.  An  old  Indian,  Chees'a'kee  or  Spiritualist,  who  once  en- 
camped within  the  limits  of  the  present  garrison,  is  related  to 
have  visited  this  abode  of  the  fairies  under  the  following  cir- 
cumstances :  During  the  night,  while  wrapped  in  the  uncon- 
sciousness of  a  sound  slumber,  one  of  these  spirits  approached 
the  place  where  he  was,  laid  his  shadowy  hand  upon  him  and 
beckoned  him  to  follow.  In  obedience  lo  the  mysterious  re- 
quest, his  spirit  left  the  body  and  went  with  the  fairy.  To- 
gether they  entered  into  the  mystic  dwelling-place  of  the 
spirits.  Here  the  Checsakee  was  introduced  to  the  Great 
Spirits  assembled  in  solemn  conclave.  He  was  lost  in  wonder 
and  admiration  at  what  he  saw  around  him.  The  place  where 
they  were  assembled  seemed  to  be  a  very  large  and  beautiful 
wigw.im.  After  spending  some  time  in  the  fairy  abode,  the 
master  spirit  of  tht  assembly  directed  one  of  the  lessv,r  spirits 
to  show  the  Indian  out  and  conduct  him  back  to  his  body. 
What  were  the  proceedings  of  that  assembly,  the  Indian  could 
not  be  induced  to  tell,  nor  were  the  particulars  of  what  he  saw 
during  that  mysterious  visit  ever  made  known  to  his  fellow 
red  men.  From  their  fairy  abodes,  these  spirits  issued  forth  at 
the  twilight  hour  to  engage  "  with  rapid  step  and  giddy  whirl 
in  their  m}stic  dance." 

Something  of  the  feeling  of  veneration  which  the  red  men 
had  for  this,  to  them,  enchanted  island  may  be  learned  from  the 
following  soliloquy  of  an  old  Indian  chief.  He  was  just  leav- 
ing the  island  to  visit  his  friends  in  the  Lake  Superior  country. 
The  shades  of  night  were  falling  around  him  and  the  deep 
blue  outlines  of  the  island  wcve  dimly  shadowed  forth.  As  he 
sat  upon  the  deck  of  the  steamer  and  watched  the  "  lovely 
isle  "  fast  receding  from  his  view,  memory  was  ousy  in  recall- 
ing the  scenes  of  by-gone  days  and  the  emotions  of  his  heart 
found  expression  in  these  words : 

"  Moc'che'ne'mock'e'nung,  thou  isle  of  the  clear,  deep-water 
lake,  how  soothing  it  is,  from  amidst  the  curling  smoke  of  my 
opawgun    (pipe),    to  trace  thy   deep  blue   outlines  in  the  dis- 


r^MiMUm 


4 


MACKINAC    ISLAXD. 


i»5 


tance  ;  to  call  from  memory's  tablets  the  traditions  and  stories 
connected  with  thy  sacred  and  mystic  character.  How  sacred 
the  regard  with  which  thou  hast  been  once  clothed  by  our 
Indian  seers  of  by-gone  days.  How  j^leasant  in  imagination 
for  the  mind  to  jiicture  and  view,  as  if  now  present,  tlie  time 
when  the  Great  Spirit  allowed  a  pcacef>.l  stillness  to  dwell 
around  thee,  when  only  light  and  balmy  winds  were  permitted 
to  pass  over  thee,  hardly  ruffling  the  mirror  surface  of  the 
waters  that  surrounded  thee  ;  or  to  hear,  by  evening  twilight,  the 
sound  of  the  Giant  Fairies  as  they,  with  rapid  step  and  giddy 
whirl,  dance  their  mystic  dance  on  thy  limestone  battlements. 
Nothing  then  disturbed  thy  quiet  and  deep  solitude  but  the 
chippering  of  birds  and  the  rustling  of  the  leaves  of  the  silver- 
barked  birch."  But  these  fairy  spirits  have  long  since  deserted 
their  island  home  and  gone  we  know  not  where,  and  the  race 
of  beings  in  whose  imagination  they  lived  has  also  well  nigh 
passed  away. 

From  Father  Marquette's  description  of  the  island  given 
in  a  previous  cliapter,  we  learn  that  it  was  often  the  chosen 
home  of  the  savage  tribes.  Marquette  was  doubtless  the  first 
white  man  to  visit  it,  or  at  least  to  dwell  ujoon  it.  The  first 
permanent  white  settlement  on  this  island  was  made  in  17S0, 
when  the  fort  and  town  were  removed  to  this  point,  not  be- 
cause of  its  superiority  in  a  commercial  or  military  point  of 
view,  but  for  the  security  which  it  afforded  against  the  sur- 
rounding Indian  tribes.  Had  that  one  event  of  June  4th,  1763, 
never  occurred,  this  island  would  no  doubt  have  still  been  in 
the  hands  of  nature,  and  the  fort  and  town  at  "  Old  Alackinac," 
where  they  properly  belong. 

Contrary  to  the  ti'eaty  of  17S3,  the  English  held  possession 
of  the  island  until  i795?  when  they  were  compelled  to  give  it 
up.  The  size  and  population  of  the  town  has  varied  at  difter- 
ent  stages  of  its  histcjry.  In  1820  it  consisted  "  of  about  one 
hundred  and  fifty  houses  and  Gome  four  hundred  and  fifty  jier- 
manent  inhabitants."  At  that  time  there  was  no  school,  no  re- 
ligious service,  no  attorney,  and  no  physician  (other  than  at  the 


m 


m 


:il 


m  'iS 


1; '  ';  'Si 

ft :  '-F, 


126 


OLD    AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


garrison)  in  the  place.  There  were,  however,  courts  of  law, 
a  post  office,  a  jail,  and  one  or  more  justices  of  the  peace.  At 
present,  there  are  about  eight  hundred  inhabitants,  many  of 
whom  are  engaged  in  fishing,  and  absent  during  a  greater  part 
of  the  summer. 

The  most  interesting  feature  of  the  island  since  the  war 
of  1812  has  been  its  connection  with  the  fur  trade  carried  on 
b}'  John  Jacob  Astor,  Esq.,  of  New  York.  Previous  to  1S09 
an  association  of  traders  existed,  called  the  Mackinac  Com- 
pany, but  at  that  date  Mr.  Astor  organized  the  American  Fur 
Company.  Two  years  after  this  he  bought  out  the  Mackinac 
Company  and  established  a  new  company  known  as  the  South- 
West.  During  the  winter  of  1S15  and  1S16  Congress  enacted  a 
law  that  no  foreigner  should  engage  in  trade  with  the  Indians 
who  did  not  become  a  citizen,  and  after  this  Mr.  Astor  again 
established  the  American  Company.  This  company  was  or- 
ganized with  a  capital  of  two  million  dollars.  It  had  no 
chartered  right  to  a  monopoly  of  the  Indian  trade,  yet  by  its 
wealth  and  influence  it  virtually  controlled  that  trade  through  a 
long  series  of  years.  The  outposts  of  the  company  wei"e  scat- 
tered throughout  the  whole  West  and  North-west.  This 
island  was  the  great  central  mart.  The  goods  were  brought  to 
the  company's  storehouses  at  this  point  from  New  York  by 
way  of  the  lakes,  and  from  Qiiebcc  and  Montreal  by  way  of 
the  Ottawa,  Lake  Nipissing  and  French  River,  and  from  this 
point  they  were  distributed  to  all  the  outposts,  while  from  all 
the  Indian  countries  the  furs  were  annually  brought  down  to 
the  island  by  the  company's  agents,  whence  they  were  sent  to 
New  York,  Qiiebec,  or  the  various  if)arkets  of  the  Old  World. 
The  traders  and  their  clerks  who  went  into  "  the  countries " 
were  employed  by  the  company  at  a  salary  of  from  four  to  six 
hundred  dollars  per  year,  but  the  engages  or  boatmen  who 
were  engaged  in  Canada,  generally  for  five  years,  received, 
besides  a  yearly  supply  of  a  few  coarse  articles  of  clothing, 
less  than  one  hundred  dollars  per  annum.  Generally,  at  the 
end  of  five  years,  the  poor  voyagcurs  were  in  debt  from  fifty  to 


M.'M-cMhiUlm 


MACKINAC    ISLAND. 


127 


one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars,  which  they  must  pay  before  they 
could  leave  the  country ;  and  the  trader  often  took  advantage 
of  this,  even  encouraging  the  men  to  get  in  debt,  that  they 
might  avoid  the  necessity  of  introducing  new  and  inexperi- 
enced men  into  the  country.  The  men  were  fed  mainly  on 
soup  made  of  hulled  corn,  or  sometimes  of  peas,  with  barely 
tallow  enough  to  season  it,  and  without  salt,  unless  they  pur- 
chased it  themselves  at  a  high  price.  The  goods  were  put  up 
in  bales  or  packs  of  about  eighty  jjounds  each,  to  be  carried 
into  the  countries.  Upon  setting  out,  a  certain  number  of 
these  jiacks  were  assigned  to  each  boatman,  which  he  irust 
carry  upon  his  back  across  the  portages,  some  of  which  were 
fifty  miles  over.  They  performed  the  journeys  over  these 
portages  by  short  stages,  or  by  carrying  the  packs  but  a  short 
distance  at  a  time,  thus  never  permitting  their  goods  to  be  sep- 
arated. The  route  of  travel  to  the  head  waters  of  the  Missis- 
sippi was  by  way  of  Lake  Huron,  St.  Mary's  River,  Lake 
Superior,  and  such  rivers  as  would  take  them  nearest  the  par- 
ticular points  to  which  the  various  parties  had  been  assigned. 
The  valleys  of  the  Mississippi  and  the  Missouri  were  reached 
by  way  of  Green  Bay,  Fox  and  Wisconsin  rivers.  The  traders 
often  occupied  nearly  the  whole  summer  in  the  trip  from  their 
trading  posts  to  Mackinac  and  back. 

Mr.  Astor's  principal  agent  on  this  island  was  Ramsey 
Crooks,  to  whom,  with  others,  he  sold  out  in  1S34 ;  but  the 
trade  now  lacked  tiic  energy  and  controlling  influence  which 
Mr.  Astor  had  given  it,  and  the  company  soon  became  involved. 
Li  184S  the  business  vi^as  closed  and  the  property  sold.  In  its 
best  days  the  business  was  one  of  mammoth  proportions,  but 
it  exists  now  only  in  hislory. 

Schoolcraft  gives  the  following  description  of  the  state  of 
society  in  1820:  "Society  at  Michilimackinac  consists  of  so 
many  diverse  elements,  which  impart  their  hue  to  it,  that  it  is 
not  easy  for  a  passing  traveler  to  form  any  just  estimate  of  it. 
The  Indian,  with  his  plumes  and  gay  and  easy  costume,  always 
imparts   an  oriental  air  to  it.      To   this   the   Canadian,  gay, 


i' 


I2S 


OLD    AND    NEW     MACKINAC. 


thoughtless,  ever  bent  on  the  present,  and  carinj^  nothing  for 
to-morrow,  adds  another  phase.  The  trader,  or  interior  clerk, 
who  takes  his  outfit  of  goods  to  the  Indians,  and  spends  eleven 
months  of  the  year  in  toil,  and  want,  and  petty  traflic,  appears 
to  dissipate  his  means  with  a  sailor-like  improvidence  in  a  few 
weeks,  and  then  returns  to  his  forest  wanderings,  and  boiled 
corn,  pork,  and  wild  rice  again  supply  his  wants.  There  is  in 
these  periodical  resorts  to  the  central  quarters  of  the  Fur  Com- 
pany much  to  remind  one  of  the  old  feudal  manner.^,  in  which 
there  is  proud  hospitality  and  a  show  of  lordliness  on  the  one 
side,  and  gay  obsequiousness  and  cringing  dependence  on  the 
other,  at  least  till  the  annual  bargains  for  the  trade  are  closed." 

The  elements  of  the  present  population  are  much  the  same 
as  during  the  palmy  days  of  the  fur  trade.  Indians,  primitive 
possessors  of  the  "  beautiful  isle,"  are  still  present,  and  consti- 
tute no  inconsiderable  portion  of  the  inhabitants.  Many  of  the 
old  French  and  English  voyageurs  who  ha\'e  spent  the  best  part 
of  their  lives  in  the  employ  of  the  fur  trade,  arc  also  living  upon 
the  island.  The  population  is  mixed — English,  French,  and 
Indian  blood  frequently  flows  in  the  veins  of  the  same  family. 
Aside  from  the  original  population,  there  are  several  very  ex- 
cellent families  who  have  come  to  the  place  at  a  comparatively 
recent  date. 

The  town  itself  is  a  perfect  curiosity.  It  is  situated  at  the 
foot  of  the  blufl',  upon  the  brow  of  which  stands  the  fort,  and 
extends  for  the  distance  of  about  a  mile  around  the  beach.  It 
contains  two  churches,  four  good  hotels,  capable  of  accommo- 
dating from  thirty  to  two  hundred  guests  each,  seven  stores, 
and  four  or  five  groceries,  about  one  hundred  dwelling  houses, 
a  post  oftice,  court  house,  and  jail.  Some  of  the  buildings  are 
of  modern  architecture,  but  others  are  antique  in  design 
and  appearance.  There  are  buildings  yet  standing,  parts 
of  whicli  were  brought  from  Old  Mackinac  when  the 
town  and  fort  were  removed  from  that  point,  while  several  of 
the  houses,  some  of  which  are  yet  occupied,  were  standing 
during  the  troubled  and  exciting  scenes  of  1S12.      Many  of  the 


tl 


MACKINAC    ISLAND. 


129 


fences  arc  of  the  original  palisade  style.  Let  us  make  the  cir- 
cuit of  the  town,  starting  from  the  docks.  As  we  proceed 
along  tlie  beach  towards  the  west,  we  see  buildings  of  every 
description,  from  the  most  modern  style  down  to  the  shanty 
with  clapboards  and  shingles  of  bark.  Beyond  the  extreme 
western  limits  of  Shanty  Town  is  the  site  of  the  old  distillery, 
where,  in  181 2,  the  terrified  and  trembling  inhabitants  were 
gathered  for  safety  while  Captain  Roberts,  with  his  savage 
allies,  should  possess  himself  of  the  fort  and  island.  Above 
this  is  the  old  Indian  burying  ground,  where  still  sleep  the 
mouldering  dust  of  many  a  brave  son  of  the  forest.  Retracing 
our  steps,  we  turn  to  the  left  and  pass  througli  Shanty  Tovvn, 
principally  occupied  by  fishermen  who  are  absent  during  most 
of  the  summer.  The  fishing  grounds  extend  from  Drummond's 
Island,  near  Detour,  around  the  north  shores  of  Huron  and 
Michigan  to  Green  Bay,  including  the  islands  in  the  northern 
portion  of  both  these  lakes.  As  we  return  to  the  town  on  the 
back  street  we  notice  on  the  right  the  old  Catholic  burying 
ground,  upon  which  once  stood  the  old  log  church  brought 
from  Old  Mackinaw  after  the  massacre.  Farther  along,  upon 
the  same  side  of  the  road,  is  an  antique  house  with  huge  stone 
chimneys  and  dormer  windows,  which,  during  the  war  of  1S12, 
was  occupied  by  Dr.  Mitchell.  Mitchell  was  a  traitor,  and 
after  the  return  of  peace  had  to  leave  the  island  and  country 
for  Canada.  Adjoining  the  court  house  is  the  old  storehouse 
of  the  Amei'ican  Fur  Company,  which  was  the  place  of  deposit 
and  point  of  departure  for  all  the  merchandise  of  that  company. 
The  adjacent  building,  now  the  McLeod  House,  was  put  up 
by  the  Company  for  the  accommodation -of  the  clerks  when 
they  came  out  of  the  Indian  countries  during  the  summer. 

Returning  now  to  the  point  from  which  we  set  out,  let  us 
make  our  way  towards  the  eastern  extremity  of  the  town.  The 
large  garden  upon  our  left  as  we  leave  the  business  portion  of 
the  town,  belongs  to  the  fort.  It  is  cultivated  by  the  soldiers 
of  the  garrison,  and  does  much  towards  supplying  them  with 
vegetables  of  almost  every  variety.     Potatoes,  beets,  carrots, 


I30 


OLD    AM)    NEW    MACKINAC. 


radishes,  onions,  cabbaj^e,  cucumbers,  etc.,  are  produced  in  great 
abundance  and  of  the  best  quality.  Ciicrries,  currants,  strav/bcr- 
ries,  and  other  small  fruits  also  grow  plentifully  in  this  and  other 
gardens,  and  from  one  tree,  standing  near  the  fort  barn,  twen- 
ty-two barrels  of  apples  were  taken  at  a  single  gathering  a  few 
years  since.  In  this  garden  is  the  site  of  the  old  government  or 
council  house,  the  first  building  ever  erected  upon  the  island. 

Adjoining  the  garden  on  the  east  is  the  old  agency  prop- 
erty. The  house  was  erected  about  fil"ty  jears  ago  by  the  Gov- 
ernment, as  a  residence  and  office  for  the  United  States  Indian 
Agent.  For  many  years  all  the  Indian  payments  were  made  in 
this  building,  which  was  thus  made  to  subserve  the  same  gen- 
eral purpose  as  the  old  government  house.  The  other  building, 
called  the  dormitory,  now  occupied  by  the  union  school  cf 
the  place,  was  erected  by  the  ovcrmnent  for  the  accom- 
modation of  the  Indians  during  l.  ^^iodical  visits  to 
the  island  for  the  purpose  of  receiving  tlien  ..  luiities,  but 
never  much  used  by  them.  The  next  building  which  attracts 
particular  attention  is  the  Catholic  Church.  This  was  at  first  a 
small  log  building,  erected  in  1833  by  Father  Mazzuchelli,  but 
with  two  enlargements  it  has  grown  to  it;  present  dimensions. 
The  society  is  now  contemplating  the  erection  of  a  new  and 
more  commodious  edifice. 

At  the  extreme  eastern  end  of  the  town  is  the  mission 
property  now  in  possession  of  Mr.  E.  A.  Franks,  the  house  be- 
ing kept  by  him  as  a  hotel.  The  history  of  this  mission  is 
briefly  as  follows :  In  the  month  of  June,  in  the  year  1S20,  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Morse,  father  of  the  inventor  of  the  telegraph,  visited 
this  island  and  preached  the  first  Protestant  sermon  ever  deliv- 
ered in  this  portion  of  the  Northwest.  Becoming  particularly 
interested  in  the  condition  of  the  traders  and  natives,  he  made 
a  report  of  his  visit  to  the  United  Foreign  Mission  Society  of 
New  York,  in  consequence  of  which  the  Rev.  W.  M.  Ferry,  a 
graduate  of  Union  College,  was  sent  in  1822  to  explore  the 
field.  In  1823  Mr.  Ferry,  with  his  wife,  opened  a  school  for 
Indian  children  which,  before  the  close  of  the  year,  contained 


MACKINAC    ISLAND, 


131 


twelve  scholars.  la  1S26  the  school  aiid  little  churcli  passed 
into  the  hands  of  the  American  Hoard  of  Commissioners  for 
Foreign  Missions,  anil  as  Mackinac  was  easy  of  access  to  the 
Iiulians  of  the  lakes  and  the  upper  Mississippi,  it  was  deter- 
mined to  make  it  a  central  station  at  which  there  should  he  a 
large  hoarding  school,  composed  of  children  collected  from  all 
the  Northwestern  trihcs.  These  chililren  were  expected  to  re- 
main long  enough  to  acquire  a  common  school  education,  and 
a  knowledge  of  manual  labor.  Shops  and  gardens  were  pro- 
vided for  the  lads,  and  the  girls  were  trained  for  household 
duties.  The  first  report  of  the  mission  made  to  the  American 
Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Missions  was  at  the  meet- 
ing held  in  New  York  in  September,  182^.  It  contained  the 
following  facts :  Nunber  of  teachers,  eight ;  Rev.  William  M. 
Ferry,  Superintendent ;  Mr.  John  S.  Hudson,  teacher  and  farm- 
mer ;  Mr.  Ileydcnburk  and  wife,  Mrs.  Hudson,  Miss  Eunice 
Osmcr,  Miss  Elizabeth  McFarland,  and  Miss  Delia  Cooke, 
teachers ;  there  were  one  hundred  and  twelve  scholars  in  the 
school,  who  had  been  collected  from  the  whole  region  extend- 
ing from  the  white  settlements  south  of  the  Great  Lakes  to 
Red  River  and  Lake  Athabasca ;  there  had  been  several  inter- 
esting cases  of  conversion  ;  French  priests  had  occasionally  vis- 
ited the  region  and  opposed  the  mission  to  the  extent  of  their 
power. 

During  the  winter  of  1S2S-9  ^  revival  influence  prevailed. 
Thirty-three  were  added  to  the  church  and  ten  or  twelve  others 
appeared  to  have  become  penitent  for  sin.  Instances  of  con- 
version occurred  even  in  the  depths  of  the  wilderness,  among 
the  traders.  The  church  now  numbered  fifty-two  members, 
twenty-five  of  Indian  descent  and  twenty-seven  whites,  exclu- 
sive of  the  mission  family.  The  establishment  continued  pros- 
perous for  several  years.  At  times  there  were  nearly  two  hun- 
dred pupils  in  the  school,  among  whom  were  representatives  of 
nearly  all  the  Indian  tribes  to  the  north  and  west. 

Owing  to  the  great  expense  of  the  school,  the  plan  was 
modified  in  1S33,  the  number  of  scholars  being  limited  to  fifty, 


132 


OLD   AND    NEW   MACKINAC. 


and  smaller  stations  commenced  in  the  region  beyond  Lake 
Superior  and  tiie  Mississippi.  In  1S34  Mr.  Ferry  was  released 
from  the  mission,  and  in  1837,  the  popnhition  having  so  changed 
around  Mackinac,  and  the  resort  of  the  Indians  to  the  Island 
for  purposes  of  trade  having  so  nearly  ceased  that  it  was  no 
longer  an  advantageous  site  for  an  Indian  mission,  the  enter- 
prise was  abandoned. 

The  mission  house  was  erected  in  1825,  and  the  church  in 
1829-30.  After  the  close  of  the  mission  the  property  passed 
into  the  hands  of  the  present  occupant.  We  cannot  say  how 
much  or  how  little  was  accomplished  by  this  mission  ;  the  rcve- 
•lations  of  eternity  alone  will  give  full  and  reliable  information 
on  this  point.  We  only  know  that  many  who  would  other- 
wise have  been  left  in  ignorance  and  heathenism  arc  indebted 
to  the  Christian  efforts  of  these  missionaries  for  a  knowledge 
both  of  the  arts  and  sciences,  and  of  the  way  of  salvation. 

Having  now  made  the  circurt  of  the  town,  we  are  ready 
for  the  two  forts.  Fort  Mackinac,  which  stands  on  a  rocky 
eminence  just  above  the  town,  was  built  by  the  English  ni-iety 
years  ago.  It  's  new  garrisoned  by  a  small  company  of  United 
States  troops  under  the  command  of  Brevet  Major  Leslie  Smith. 
There  are  six  brass  pieces,  and  arms  and  accoutrements  for  a 
full  company.  The  buildii.ga  are  a  hospital,  just  outside  the 
wall  east  of  the  fort,  a  guard  house,  near  the  south  gate,  officers' 
quarters,  near  the  south-west  angle  of  the  fort,  and  on  the  hill 
near  the  flag-staff;  quarters  for  the  men,  in  the  centre  ;  block- 
houses on  the  walls  ;  magazine,  in  the  hollow,  not  far  from  the 
south  gate  ;  storehouses,  offices,  etc.  There  are  persons  yet 
living  on  the  island  who,  during  the  troubles  of  1814,  took  re- 
fuge in  these  selfsame  block-houses.  Passing  out  at  the  rear 
gate  of  Fort  Mackinac,  we  cross  the  parade  ground  and  see  the 
S]>ot  where  Captain  Roberts  planted  his  guns  in  t8i2,  while 
his  whole  force  of  Indians  was  concealed  in  the  adjacent 
thickets. 

Half  or  three-quarters  of  a  mile  to  the  rear  of  Fort  Macki- 
nac, on  the  crowr.ing  point  of  the  island,  is  Fort  Holmes. 


MACKINAC    ISLAND. 


m 


This,  as  we  have  seen,  was  built  soon  after  the  Britisli  captured 
the  post  in  1S12,  E?ch  citizen  was  compelled  to  give  three 
days'  work  towards  its.  construction.  When  finished  the  exca- 
vation encircling  the  embankment,  or  earthworks,  was  much 
broader  and  deeper  than  now,  and  the  embankment  itself  was 
lined  on  the  outside  by  cedar  poles,  reaching  from  the  bottom 
of  the  ditch  to  its  top,  while  a  quarter  or  a  third  of  the  distance 
from  the  top  of  the  embankment  to  the  bottom  of  the  ditch, 
cedar  pickets  interlocked  with  these  poles,  which  extended  out 
over  the  ditch  like  the  eaves  of  a  house,  making  it  absolutely 
impossible  for  any  one  to  get  inside  the  fort  except  by  the  gate. 
The  place  of  the  gate  is  seen  on  the  cast  side,  one  of  the  posts 
yet  remaining  to  mark  its  position.  In  the  centre  of  the  fort 
was  erected  a  huge  block-house,  beneath  which  was  the  maga- 
zine. Near  the  gate  was  the  entrance  to  several  underground 
cellars,  which  have  now  caved  in.  The  fort  was  defended  by 
several  small  guns,  the  largest  of  which  was  an  eighteen- 
pounder,  placed  on  the  point,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  cel- 
lars from  the  fort.  They  undertook  to  dig  two  wells,  but  find- 
ing no  water  at  the  depth  of  one  hundi-ed  feet,  they  became 
discouraged  and  rclinquislied  the  attempt. 

The  fort,  we  are  tokl,  presented  a  very  fine  appearance 
when  finished.  It  was  first  named  Fort  George,  bat  after  the 
surrender  of  the  island  to  the  Americans  it  was  called  Fort 
Holmes,  in  memory  of  the  lamented  Major  Holmes,  who  fell 
as  before  recorded. 

After  the  return  of  the  Americans  a  party  of  officers,  wish- 
ii.j  >  see  what  they  could  do,  planted  a  gun  at  the  rear  gate  of 
Fort  Mackinac  and  made  the  l^Iock-lnuse  in  Fort  Holmes  a 
mark.  They  soon  tore  this  monument  of  English  absurdity  in 
pieces,  showing  how  ill-adapted  the  fort  was  to  the  purposes 
intended.  The  fragments  of  the  building  were  afterwards  re- 
moved to  the  foot  of  the  hill  beneath  Fort  Mackinac  and  made 
into  a  barn,  which  is  yet  standing. 


M\ 


m 


OLD    AND    NEW   MACKINAC. 


CHAPTER  IX. 


BIACKINAC    ISLAND,    CONCLUDED. 

The  natural  scenery  of  the  island  of  Mackinac  is  unsur- 
passed. Nature  seems  to  have  exhau  itcd  herself  in  the  clustered 
objects  of  interest  which  everywhere  meet  the  eye.  The  lover 
of  nature  may  wander  through  th.e  shaded  glens  and  climb 
over  the  rugged  rocks  of  this  island  for  weeks,  and  even 
months,  and  never  grow  weary,  for  each  day  some  new  object 
of  beauty  and  interest  will  attract  his  attention.  As  you 
approach  the  island  it  ap]^>ears  a  perfect  gem.  A  finer  subject 
for  an  artist's  pencil  could  not  be  found.  In  some  places  it  rises 
almost  perpendicularly  from  the  very  water's  edge  to  the  heiglit 
of  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet,  while  in  otliers  the  ascent  is  grad- 
ual. Parts  of  the  island  are  covered  witli  a  small  growth  of 
hardwood  trees — beech,  maple,  ironwood,  birch,  etc., — while 
other  parts  abound  in  a  rich  variety  of  evergreens,  among 
which  spruce,  arbor-vitic,  ground  pine,  white  pine,  balsam,  and 
junij^cr  predominate.  Henry  R.  Schoolcraft,  Esq.,  who  first 
visited  the  island  in  1S20,  thus  speaks  of  it: 

"  Nothing  can  exceed  the  beauty  of  this  island.  It  is  a 
mass  of  calcareous  rock,  rising  from  the  bed  of  Lake  Huron, 
and  reaching  an  elevation  of  more  than  three  hwndred  feet 
above  the  water.  The  waters  around  are  purity  itself.  Some 
of  its  clifi's  shoot  up  perpendicdarly,  and  tower  in  pinnacles 
like  ruinous  Gothic  steeples.  It  -.s  cavernous  in  some  ^'la'-cs  ; 
and  in  these  caverns  the  aucient  Indians,  like  those  of  Indui, 
have  placed  their  dead.  Portions  of  the  beach  arc  level,  and 
adapted  to  landing  from  boats  and  canoes.  The  harbor,  at  '.ts 
south  end,  is  a  little  gem.     Vessels  anchor  in  it  and  find  gjod 


i  ii^iiiim 


MACKINAC    IS1.AND,    CON'CLUDED. 


135 


holding.  The  Httle,  old-fashioned  French  town  nestles  around 
it  in  a  very  primitive  style.  The  fort  frowns  above  it,  like 
another  Alhambra,  its  white  walls  gleaming  in  the  sun.  The 
whole  area  of  the  island  is  one  labyrinth  of  curious  little  glens 
and  valleys.  Old  green  fields  appear,  in  some  spots,  which 
have  been  formerly  cultivated  by  the  Indians.  In  somo  of 
these  there  are  circles  of  gathered  up  stones,  as  if  the  Druids 
themselves  had  dwelt  here.  The  soil,  though  rough,  is  fertile, 
being  the  comminuted  materials  of  broken-down  limestones. 
The  island  was  formerly  covered  with  a  dense  growth  of  rock- 
maples,  oaks,  ironwood,  and  other  hardwood  species,  and  thei'e 
arc  still  parts  of  this  ancient  forest  left,  but  all  the  southern 
limits  of  it  exhibit  a  young  growth.  There  are  walks  and 
winding  paths  among  its  little  hills,  and  precipices  of  the  most 
romantic  character.  And  whenever  the  visitor  gets  on  emi- 
nences overlooking  the  lake,  he  is  transported  with  bublime 
views  of  a  most  illimitable  and  magnificent  water  prospect. 
If  tbc-  noetic  muses  are  ever  to  have  a  new  Parnassus  in  Amer- 
ica, titey  should  inevitably  fix  on  Michilimackinac.  Hygeia, 
t  )0  ''•  Uild  place  her  temple  here,  for  it  has  one  of  the  purest, 
ru  cst    .learest,  and  most  healthful  atmospheres." 

.'.he  geological  aspects  of  the  island  are  curious  and  inter- 
esting. At  its  base  may  be  seen  the  rocks  of  the  Onondaga 
Salt  Group,  above  which,  says  Professor  Winchell,  State  Geol- 
ogist of  Michigan,  "  the  well  characterized  limestones  of  the 
Upper  Ilclderberg  Group,  to  the  thickness  of  two  hundred  and 
fifty  feet,  exist  in  a  confusedly  brecciated  condition.  The  indi- 
vidual fragments  of  the  mass  are  angular,  and  seem  to  have 
Keen  but  little  moved  from  their  original  places.  It  appears  as 
.iic  v/hole  formation  had  been  shattered  by  sudden  vibra- 
tions and  unequal  uplitls,  and  afterwards  a  thin  calcareous  mud 
poured  over  the  broken  mass,  percolating  through  all  the  inter- 
stices, and  re-cementing  the  fragments. 

"  This  is  the  general  physical  character  of  the  mass  ;  but 
in  many  places  the  original  lines  of  stratification  can  be  traced, 
and  individual  layers  of  the  formation  can  be  seen  dipping  at 


136 


OLD   AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


various  angles  and  in  all  directions,  sometimes  exhibiting 
abrupt  flexures,  and  not  unfrequcutly  a  complete  downthrow 
of  fifteen  or  twenty  feet.  These  phenoincna  were  particularly 
noticed  at  the  cliff  known  as  Robinson's  Folly. 

"In  the  highest  \irt  of  the  island,  back  of  Old  Fort 
Holmes,  the  formation  1.-  \  less  brecciatcd,  and  exhibits  an 

oolitic  character,  as  first  obe,  ived  in  the  township  of  Bedford, 
in  Monroe  county." 

"  The  Island  of  Mackinac  shows  the  most  indubitable 
evidence  of  the  former  prevalence  of  the  water,  to  the  height 
of  two  hundred  and  fifty  feet  above  the  present  level  of  the 
lake  ;  and  there  has  been  an  jnbroken  continuance  of  the  same 
kind  of  aqueous  action  from  that  time  during  the  gradual  sub- 
sidence of  the  waters  to  their  present  condition.  No  break 
can  be  detected  in  the  evidences  of  this  action  from  the  present 
water-line  upward  for  thirty,  fifty,  or  one  hundred  feet,  and  even 
up  to  the  level  of  the  grottoes  excavated  in  the  brecciatcd  ma- 
terials of  '  Sugar  Loaf,'  the  level  of  '  Skull  Cave,'  and  the 
'  Devil's  Kitchen.' 

"  While  we  state  the  fact,  however,  of  the  continuity  of 
the  action  during  all  this  period,  it  is  not  intended  to  allege 
that  the  water  of  the  lakes,  as  such,  has  ever  stood  at  the  level 
of  the  summit  of  Sugar  Loaf.  Nor  do  we  speak  upon  the 
question  whether  these  changes  have  been  caused  by  the  sub- 
sidence of  the  lakes,  or  the  uplift  of  the  island  and  adjacent 
promontories.  It  is  true  that  the  facts  presented  bear  upon 
these  and  other  interesting  questions,  but  we  must  forego  any 
discussion  of  them." 

In  a  private  communication  to  the  writer,  t^he  author  of 
these  extracts  states  that,  in  his  opinion,  there  has  been  some 
elevation  of  the  island  and  adjacent  regions,  but  more  subsi- 
dence of  the  water.  The  island  and  neighboring  promontories 
were  once  continuous  with  each  otiier,  the  isolation  having 
been  eftected  by  denudation  ;  ''  much  of  which,"  says  the  same 
eminent  author,  "  was  probably  cflectcd  during  the  prevalence 


MACKIXAC    ISLAND,   CONCLUDED. 


137 


of  the  continental  glacial,  and  much  during  the  time  of  floods 
following,  and  the  action  of  the  sea  ^vhile  the  region  was  sub- 
merged." Springs  of  water,  clear  and  cold,  may  be  found  at 
the  base  of  tlie  high  cliHs  which  bound  many  parts  of  the 
island,  and  also  at  other  localities  in  its  interior.  The  geology 
of  the  surrounding  islands  and  promontories  is  much  the  same 
as  that  of  this  island. 

With  these  general  ideas,  descriptive  and  geological,  we 
may  now  proceed  to  visit  the  various  places  of  interest.  Start- 
ing from  Fort  Mackinac,  let  us  follow  the  foot-path  along  the 
brow  of  the  bluff  overlooking  the  eastern  part  of  the  town.  If 
fond  of  natural  scenery,  wc  shall  be  delighted  with  the  grand 
panorama  of  nature,  the  successive  scenes  of  which  will  be 
presented  to  us  as  we  proceed.  Half  or  three-quarters  of  a 
mile  from  the  fort,  at  the  south-eastern  angle  of  the  island,  is 
the  overhanging  cliff  known  as  "  Robinson's  Folly."*  The 
following  is  the  interesting  history  of  this  point:  After  the  re- 
moval of  the  fort  to  the  island  in  17S0,  Captain  Robinson,  who 
then  commanded  the  post,  had  a  summer-house  built  ujion  this 
cliff.  This  soon  became  a  place  of  frequent  resort  for  himself 
and  his  brother  officers.  Pipes,  cigars,  and  wine  wei'e  called 
into  requisition,  for  at  the  time  no  hospitality  or  entertainment 
was  complete  witliout  them,  and  thus  many  an  hour  which 
would  otherwise  have  been  lonely  and  tedious,  passed  pleas- 
antly away.  After  a  few  years,  however,  by  the  action  of  the 
elements,  a  portion  of  this  cliff,  with  the  summer-house,  was 
precipitated  to  the  base  of  the  rock,  which  disastrous  event  gave 
rise  to  the  name.  Around  the  beach  below  is  a  confuted  mass 
of  debris,  the  remains,  doubtless,  of  the  fall. 

A  little  to  the  north  of  Robinson's  Folly  may  be  seen  an 
immense  rock  standing  out  boldly  from  the  mountain's  side, 
near  the  base  of  which  is  a  very  beautiful  little  arch  known  as 
the  "  Arch  of  the  Giant's  Stairway."  This  arch  is  well  worth 
the  trouble  of  a  visit. 


*  Sec  Map  of  the  Island. 


138 


OLD   AND    NEW  MACKINAC. 


A  walk  along  the  beach  northward  from  this  point  is 
somewhat  difficult,  on  account  of  the  large  portions  of  the  clifls 
which  have  in  places  been  precipitated  to  the  water's  edge,  but 
a  good  foot-path  along  the  brow  of  the  bluft'  brings  us,  with 
only  a  few  minutes'  walk,  to  the  far-famed  "  Arch  Rock." 
_-^^^-'^^—  This  is  one  of  Nature's 

C"^"  ■=  _  works  which   must  be 

seen  to  be  appreciated. 
Words  cannot  fully  de- 
scribe it  in  all  its  grand- 
eur. It  is  a  magnifi- 
cent natural  arch  span- 
ning a  chasm  of  eighty 
or  ninety  feet  in  height, 
and  forty  or  fifty  in 
width.  The  summit 
of  this  rock  is  one  hun- 
dred and  forty-nine  feet 
above  the  level  of  the 
lake.  Its  abutments 
are  composed  of  cal- 
careous rock,  and  the 
opening  imderneath  the 
arch  has  been  produced 
by  the  falling  down  of 
the  great  masses  of  rock 
now  to  be  seen  upon 
Arch  Rock.*  thc   bcach   bclow.     A 

path  to  the  right  leads  to  the  brink  of  the  arch,  whence  the  vis- 
itor, if  sufficiently  reckless,  may  pass  to  its  summit,  which  is 
about  three  feet  in  width.  Here  we  see  twigs  of  cedar  grow- 
ing out  of  what  appears  to  be  solid  rock,  while  in  the  rear  and 
on  cither  hand  the  lofty  eminence  is  clothed  with  trees  and 
shrubbery— maple,  birch,  poplar,  cedar,  and  balsam— giving  to 

*  Tlic  above  cut  is  from  Professor  Wincli'jU's  "  Sketches  of  Creation,"  published 
by  Harper  &  Hrothers,  New  York. 


^n 


MACKINAC    ISLAND,    CONCLUDED. 


139 


the  landscape  richness  and  variety.  Before  us  are  the  majestic 
waters  of  Lake  Huron,  dotted  in  the  distance  with  islands. 
We  may  now  descend  through  the  great  chasm,  "  arched  by 
the  hand  of  God,"  and  at  the  base  of  the  projecting  angle  of 
the  nii  n  rock  find  a  second  arch,  less  magnificent,  but  no  less 
curious  and  wonderful.  Passing  under  this,  we  soon  reach  the 
beach  below,  whence  the  view  is  particularly  grand  and  impos- 
ing. The  mighty  arch  seems  suspended  in  mid  air  above  us, 
and  as  we  gaze  upon  it,  lost  in  wonder  and  admiration,  we  ex- 
claim with  the  Psalmist,  "  Lord,  what  is  man  that  Thou  takest 
knowledge  of  him,  or  the  son  of  man  that  Thou  makest  account 
of  him  !"  Foster  and  Whitney  say  of  this  rock  :  "  The  portion 
supporting  the  arch  on  the  north  side,  and  the  curve  of  the 
arch  itscif,  are  comparatively  fragile,  and  cannot  for  a  long  pe- 
riod resist  the  action  of  rains  and  frosts,  which,  in  this  latitude, 
and  on  a  rock  thus  constituted,  produce  great  ravages  every 
season.  The  arcli,  which  on  one  side  now  connects  this  abut- 
ment with  the  main  clifi',  will  soon  be  destroyed,  as  well  as  the 
abutment  itself,  and  the  whole  be  precipitated  into  the  lake." 

Tlie  following  parody  on  a  popular  song  was  found  writ- 
ten on  a  stone  near  the  base  of  Arch  Rock,  about  five  years 

since : 

"  Beauteous?  Isle!  I  sing  of  thee, 

Mackinac,  my  Mackinac, 
Thy  hike-bound  shores  I  love  to  see, 

Mackinac,  my  Mackinac. 
From  Arch  Rock's  height  and  shelving  steep  ] 

To  western  cliffs  and  Lover's  Leap, 
Where  memories  of  the  lost  one  sleep, 

Mackinac,  my  Mackinac. 

"  Thy  Northern  shore  trod  British  foe, 
^lackinac,  my  Mackinac, 
That  day  saw  gallant  Holmes  laid  low, 
Mackinac,  my  Mackinac. 
Now  Freedom's  flag  above  thee  waves,  ^ 

And  guards  the  rest  of  fallen  braves,  ^ 

Their  requiem  sung  by  Huron's  waves, 
Mackinac,  my  Mackinac." 


140 


OLD    AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


* 
,% 


Taking  the  road  which  leads  into  the  interior  of  the  island, 
we  soon  find  ourselves  at  the  "  Sugar  Loaf  Rock."  This  rock 
is  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  yards  from  the  foot  of  the  high 
ridge,  upon  the  south-east  extremity  of  which  stands  Fort 
Holmes.  The  plateau  upon  which  it  stands  is  about  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  feet  above  the  level  of  the  lake,  while  the  sum- 
mit of  the  rock  is  two  hundred  and  eighty-four  feet  above  the 
lake,  giving  an  elevation  of  134  feet  to  the  rock  itself.  The 
composition  of  this  rock  is  the  same  as  that  of  Arch  Rock.  Its 
shape  is  conical,  and  from  its  crevices   ^row  a  few  vines  and 

cedars.  It  is  cavernous  and 
somewhat  crystalline,  with 
its  strata  distorted  in  every 
conceivable  direction.  In 
the  north  side  is  an  open- 
ing, sufficient  in  its  dimen- 
sions to  admit  several  in- 
dividuals. Here  one  might 
s|  find  shelter  from  the  most 
^*^-  violent  storm.  Within  this 
opening, 'upon  the  smooth 
surfaces  of  tlie  rock,  may 
be  found  the  autograph.s  of 
hundreds  of  eager  asj^irants 
Sugar  Loaf  Rock.*  ^^^_^^.  i^niortality.     As  we 

take  refuge  in  this  rock  we  are  reminded  of  the  Rock  of  Ages, 
and  led  to  sing,  wiih  the  poet, 

"  Rock  of  Ages,  cleft  for  me, 
Let  me  hide  myself  in  tliee." 

As  wc  approach  this  rock  along  the  road,  the  effect  is 
grand  and  imposing.  The  patriarch  of  the  ages,  it  lifts  its 
hoary  head  high  up  towards  heaven  in  utter  defiance  of  the 
fury  of  the  elements.     The  view  is  also  very  fine  from  the  top 


*  The  above  cut  is  from  Professor  WinchcH's  "  Sketches  of  Creation,"  piiblisheil 
by  Harper  &  Brothers,  New  York. 


^ 


MACKINAC    ISLAND,    CONCLUDED. 


141 


of  the  vidge,  whenct.  by  its  isolated  position  and  bold  form,  it 
strikes  the  beholder  with  wonder  and  admiration. 

Tlic  "  curious  "  are  ever  eager  to  know  by  what  freak  of 
nature  this  monstrous  boulder  has  been  placed  in  it?  present 
position.  Has  it  been  thrust  up  through  the  crust  of  the  earth, 
like  a  needle  through  a  garment,  by  some  internal  volcanic  ac- 
tion— or  has  it  been  separated  from  the  adjacent  ridge  and  dis- 
entombed from  its  ancient  sepulchre  by  a  system  of  gradual 
denudation  carried  on  by  nature  tlu-ough  the  successive  ages  of 
the  world's  history .-'  Science  tells  us  that  the  latter  hypothesis 
is  the  true  one.  Foster  and  Whitney,  in  their  geological  re- 
port, mention  the  Arch  and  Sugar  Loaf  Rocks  "  as  particular 
examples  of  denuding  action,"  and  state  that  this  denuding  ac 
tion,  producing  such  an  opening,  (as  in  the  Arch,)  with  other 
attendant  phenomena,  couid  only  have  operated  while  near  the 
level  of  a  large  body  of  water  like  the  great  lake  itself.  This 
coincides  with  the  views  of  Professor  Winchell,  whom  we  have 
already  quoted  on  this  point.  Traces  of  water  action  now  seen 
on  the  vertical  sides  of  these  two  rocks,  two  hundred  feet  above 
tlie  level  of  the  water,  are  precisely  the  same  as  those  seen  upon 
the  rocks  close  by  the  water's  edge.  To  all  fond  of  natural  cu- 
riosities these  two  rocks  alone  possess  attractions  sufficient  to 
justify  a  visit  to  the  Northern  lakes. 

Let  us  now  return  to  tlie  fort,  whence  we  started,  and 
again  set  out  in  a  diflercnt  direction.  Half  a  mile  to  the  rear 
of  Fort  ^lackinac,  and  only  a  few  yards  to  the  right  of  the  road 
that  leads  to  Early's  farm,  is  "  Skull  Rock,"  noted  as  the  place 
where  Alexander  Henry  was  secreted  by  the  Chippewa  chief, 
Wawatam,  as  related  in  a  previous  chapter,  after  the  horrid 
massacre  of  the  British  garrison  at  Old  Mackinac.  The  en- 
trance to  this  cave  is  at  present  low  and  narrow,  and  promises 
little  to  reward  the  labors  of  exploration. 

Two  miles  west  of  the  village  and  fort  is  Early's  (formerly 
Michael  Dousmau's)  farm.  This  farm  consists  of  a  section  of 
land,  and  produces  annually  large  quantities  of  hay  and  vege- 
tables of  the  best  quality.     Near  the  house  now  occupied  by 


'W 


143 


OI,D   AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


Mr.  Early  is  that  relic  of  1812,  the  old  Dousman  house,  across 
the  road  from  which  is  the  battle  ground  hallowed  by  the  blood 
of  the  lamented  Holmes  and  others.  After  the  battle  such 
fragments  of  the  slairf  as  had  been  left  on  the  field  by  the  In- 
dians were  gathered  up  and  buried  near  the  east  end  of  the  lit- 
tle mound  or  ridge  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  field  from  the 
road. 

Following  the  road  leading  through  this  fa'rm,  we  soon  arrive 
at  the  "  British  Landing,"  so  named  from  the  fact  that  Captain 
Roberts,  with  his  mixed  command  of  English,  French,  and  In- 
dians, here  disembarked  his  forces  to  take  the  place  in  1S12. 
It  is  also  noted  as  the  point  wliere  the  American  troops  under 
Colonel  Croghan  cHected  a  landing,  under  cover  of  the  guns  of 
the  American  squadron,  on  the  eventful  fourth  of  August,  1814, 
as  already  described. 

Near  the  north-western  point  of  the  island  is  vScott's  or 
Flinn's  Cave.  To  find  this  we  turn  to  the  right  a  few  rods  this 
side  of  British  Landing,  and  follow  an  unfrequented  trail 
through  the  woods.  A  stranger  should  not  attempt  this  jour- 
ney without  a  guide.  This  cave  is  underneath  one  of  the  huge 
rocks  peculiar  to  Mackinac.  Its  entrance  is  extremely  low, 
but  when  once  inside  the  giant  Goliath  might  stand  erect. 
Those  intending  to  visit  this  cave  should  provide  themselves 
with  a  lamp  or  candle,  as  but  an  occasional  ray  of  sunlight  can 
penetrate  its  hidden  chamber.  While  inside  this  rock-roofed 
cavern  a  peculiar  sensation  takes  possession  of  you,  and  you  are 
reminded  of  the  scene  described  iii  the  sixth  chapter  of  Reve- 
lation, where  the  kings  of  the  earth  and  the  great  men  hide 
themselves  in  the  dens  and  in  the  rocks  of  the  mountain,  and 
say  to  the  mountains  and  rocks,  "  Fall  on  us  and  hide  us  from 
the  face  of  Him  that  sitteth  on  the  throne  and  from  the  wrath 
of  the  Lamb,  for  the  great  day  of  his  wrath  is  come,  and  who 
shall  be  able  to  stand?"  In  the  vicinity  of  this  cave  arc  yet 
standing  a  few  patriarchs  of  the  forest,  remnants  of  the  heavy 
growth  of  timber  which,  at  an  eai'ly  day,  covered  the  island. 

Our  next  tramp  will  be  around  the  high   blutls  which 


!! 


MACKINAC    ISLAND,    CONCLUDED. 


^3 


bouiul  the  south-western  side  of  the  islaiul.  Leaving  the  town 
at  its  western  extremity,  we  may  follow  the  foot-path  around 
the  brow  of  these  blutVs,  or  continue  along  the  beacli,  close  to 
the  water's  edge.  About  a  mile  from  the  village,  as  we  pursue 
the  latter  course,  is  the  '"  Devil's  Kitchen,"  a  cavernous  rock, 
curious,  both  in  its  formation  and  in  its  name.  Near  it  is  a 
spring  of  clear,  cold  water,  shaded  by  evergreens  and  other 
trees. 

A  few  yards  farther  on  is  the  famous  "  Lover's  Leap." 
This  rock  stands  out  boldly  from  the  side  of  the  clill",  and  in 
appearance  is  similar  to  the  Sugar  Loaf  Rock.  There  are 
other  points  on  the  island  to  which  romantic  visitors  have  ap- 
plied this  name,  but  tradition  has  bestowed  the  title  only  upon 
this.  William  M.  Johnson,  Esq.,  formerly  a  resident  of  this 
village,  gives  us  the  following  legend  concerning  it: 

"  The  huge  rock  called  the  '  Lover's  Leap '  is  situated 
about  one  mile  west  of  the  village  of  Mackinac.  It  is  a  high, 
perpendicular  bluff,  one  hundred  and  fifty  to  two  hundred  feet 
in  height,  rising  boldly  from  the  shore  of  the  lake.  A  solitary 
pine  tree  formerly  stood  upon  its  brow,  which  some  vandal  has 

cut  down. 

"  Long  before  the  pale  faces  profaned  this  island  home  of 
the  genii,  Me'che'ne'mock'e'nung'o'qua,  a  young  Ojibway  girl, 
just  maturing  into  womanhood,  often  wandered  there,  and  gazed 
from  its  dizzy  heights  and  witnessed  the  receding  canoes  of  the 
lar""c  war-parties  of  the  combined  bands  of  the  Oiibwas  and 
Ottawas  speeding  south,  seeking  for  f;\me  and  scalps. 

"  It  was  there  she  often  sat,  mused,  and  hummed  the  songs 

Ge'niw'e'gwon  loved ;  this  spot  was  endeared  to  her,  for  it  was 

there  that  she  and  Ge'niw'e'gwon  first  met  and  exchanged  words 

of  love,  and  found  an  aflinity  of  souls  existing  between  them. 

It  was  there  that  she  often  sat  and  sang  the  Ojibwa  love  song : 
'  Mong-e-do-gwain,  in-de-nain-dum, 
Mong-c-do-g\vain,  in-de-nain-dum, 
Wain-shung-ish-ween,  neen-e-mo-shane, 
Wain-shung-ish-wcen,  necn-e-mo-shane, 
A-nee-wan-wan-san-bo-a-zode, 
A-nee-wan-wan-san-bo-a-zode.' 


144 


OT.D   AND    NEW   MACKIXAC. 


"  I  give  but  one  verse,  which  may  be  translated  as  follows  : 
'  A  loon,  I  thought,  was  loomlni,', 
A  loon,  I  thoiii,'lit,  was  looming, 
Why!  it  is  he,  my  lover! 
Why!  it  is  he,  my  lover! 
I  lis  paddle  in  the  waters  gleaming. 
His  pachlie  in  the  waters  gleaming.' 

"  From  this  bLifi'shc  often  watched  ..lul  listened  for  the  re- 
turn of  the  war-parties  for  amoiigst  them  she  knew  was  Ge'- 
niw'c'gwon,  his  head  decoraiied  with  war-eagle  plumes,  which 
none  but  a  brave  could  sport.  The  west  wind  often  wafted  far 
in  advance  the  shouts  of  victory  and  death,  as  they  shouted  and 
sang  upon  leaving  Pe'qnod'e'nong,  (Old  Mackinaw,)  to  make 
the  traverse  to  the  Spirit  or  Fairy  Island. 

"  One  season,  when  the  war-party  returned,  she  could  not 
distinguish  his  familiar  and  loved  war-shout.  Her  spirit  told 
her  iLat  he  had  gone  to  the  spirit  land  of  the  west.  It  was  so  ; 
an  f  n.jrr.)'s  arrow  had  pierced  his  breast,  and  after  his  body  was 
placed  learing  against  a  tree,  his  face  fronting  his  enemies,  he 
died,  but  ere  he  died  he  wished  the  mourning  warriors  to  re- 
mcmbei'  him  to  the  sweet  maid  of  his  heart.  Thus  he  died, 
far  away  frome  home  and  the  friends  he  loved. 

"  Mc'che'nc'mock'e'nung'o'qua's  heart  hushed  its  beatings, 
and  all  the  warm  emotions  of  that  heart  were  chilled  and  dead. 
The  moving,  living  spirit  of  her  beloved  Ge'niw'c'gwon  she 
witnessed  continually  beckoning  her  to  follow  him  to  the  happy 
hunting  grounds  of  spirits  in  the  west ;  he  appeared  to  her  in 
human  shape,  but  w  as  invisible  to  others  of  his  tribe. 

"  One  morning  her  body  was  found  mangled  at  the  foot  of 
the  blufl'.  The  soul  had  thrown  aside  its  covering  of  earth,  and 
had  gone  to  join  the  spirit  of  her  beloved  Ge'niw'c'gwon,  to 
travel  together  to  the  land  of  spirits,,  realizing  the  glories  and 
bliss  of  a  future,  eternal  existence." 

Some  little  distance  further  on  is  "  Chimney  Rock,"  which 
Professor  Winchell  denominates  one  of  the  most  remarkable 
masses  of  rock  in  this  or  any  other  State. 

A  footpath  which  leads  from  the  beach  near  the  base  of 


^^ 


MACKINAC     ISLAND,    CONCLUDED. 


145 


Lover's  Leap  to  the  plateau  above  brings  us  to  the  old  Daven- 
port fariH,  now  owned  by  G.  S.  Hubbard,  of  Chicago.  Report 
says  that  several  summer-houses  are  soon  to  be  built  on  this 
farm,  which  will  greatly  enhance  the  beauty  of  the  locality. 
Adjoining  this  farm  is  the  Jones  farm,  once  the  property  of  the 
Pi'esbyterian  mission  on  the  island. 

Having  now  made  the  circuit  of  the  island,  let  us  once 
more  ascend  to  Fort  Holmes,  take  our  seats  upon  the  high  sta- 
tion built  some  years  since  by  the  Government  engineers,  and 
look  around  us.  The  island  lies  at  our  feet,  and  wc  cm  see  al- 
most every  part  of  it.  The  little  clearings  seen  in  various 
places  were  once  gardens  cultivated  by  American  soldiers. 
That  in  the  vicinity  of  Arch  Rock  was  called  the  "  big  garden." 
In  181 3,  when  the  English  captured  the  island,  the  clearing  on 
the  high  plateau  back  of  the  Fort  Holmes  was  planted  with 
potatoes,  and  when  the  Americans  came  back  to  take  posses- 
sion of  the  island  in  the  spring  of  1815  the  English,  not  having 
cultivated  it  during  the  time,  were  compelled  to  plow  it  up  and 
plant  it,  that,  according  to  the  terms  of  the  treaty,  they  might 
leave  everydiing  as  they  found  it. 

As  wc  gaze  upon  the  adjacent  islands  and  main  land  mem- 
ory is  busy  with  the  scenes  of  the  past.  Two  hundred  and  fifty 
years  ago  only  bark  canoes  dotted  the  surface  of  the  lake.  A 
few  years  later  the  songs  of  the  Canadian  voyageur,  as  he  rowed 
or  paddled  his  large  battcau,  echoed  and  reechoed  around  the 
shores.  Now  the  shrill  whistle  of  the  propeller  is  heard,  and 
the  white  sails  of  hundreds  of  vessels  are  spread  to  the  breezes. 
The  first  vessel  ever  seen  on  these  waters  was  the  Griffin,  in 
1679,  and  the  first  steamer  was  the  Walk-In-the-Water,  in  1819. 
It  would  be  difticult  to  estimate  the  amount  of  wealth  which  is 
annually  carried  through  these  straits.  During  the  season  of 
navigation  from  ten  to  fifty  sails  may  always  be  seen  passing 
up  and  down  through  the  straits,  and  almost  every  hour  in  the 
day  from  one  to  ten  propcUors  are  in  full  view. 


10 


' 


146 


OLD  AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


^.: 


Some  four  or  five  miles  to  the  north-west  of  us  lies  the 
mixed  Canadian  and  Indian  settlement  of  Point  vSt.  Ignace. 
This  was  the  second  place  settled  in  the  State  of  Michigan,  the 
Sault  being  the  first.  At  the  head  of  East  Moraa  Bay,  some 
little' distance  north  of  the  church,  is  the  site  of  the  mission  es- 
tablished by  Marquette  in  1 671,  some  remains  of  which  may 
yet  be  seen. 

Farther  north  is  the  bluft'  called  '■  Rabbit  Sitting."  North- 
easterly the  St.  Martin  Islands,  the  entrance  to  the  Chenoux 
and  the  dividing  ridge  between  this  and  the  Sault  St.  Mary. 
On  the  north-east  is  Point  Detour,  and,  though  thirty  mile  g  dis- 
tant, vessels  may  sometimes  be  seen  entering  St.  Mary's  River. 
Round  and  Bois  Blanc  Islands  lie  to  the  south-cast  of  us,  be- 
yond which,  at  the  distance  of  eighteen  iniles,  is  Cheboygan, 
situated  at  the  mouth  of  a  river  of  the  same  name.  This  place 
is  advantageously  located,  and  is  growing  rapidly. 

About  sevon  miles  south-west  from  this  island,  on  the  north- 
ern apex  of  the  southern  peninsula  of  Micliigan,  is  Mackinaw 
City.  W.  M.Johnson,  Esq.,  thus  speaks  of  this  intincsting  lo- 
cality : 

"  Mackinaw  City,  with  its  coasts  and  the  islands  before  it, 
has  been  the  theatre  of  some  of  the  most  exciting  and  interest- 
ing events  in  Indian  history,  previous  to  the  arrival  of  the 
'  white  man.'  It  was  the  metropolis  of  a  portion  of  the  Ojibwa 
and  Ottawa  nations.  It  was  there  that  their  Congresses  met,  to 
adopt  a  policy  which  terminated  in  the  conquest  of  tho  country 
south  of  it ;  it  was  there  that  the  trampi.ig  feet  of  thousands  of 
plumed  and  painted  warriors  shook  Pc'quod'e'nong — the  In- 
dian name — while  dancing  their  war  dances ;  it  was  from 
thence  that  the  startling  sound  of  the  war  yell  of  these  thou- 
sands was  wafted  to  the  adjacent  coasts  and  islands,  making 
the  peaceful  welkin  ring  with  their  unearthly  shouts  of  victory 
or  death." 


MACKINAC   ISLAND,    CONCLUDED. 


147 


With  this  glance  at  the  surroundings  of  Mnckinac,  the  fol- 
lowing table  of  altitudes  will  appropriately  close  the  chapter.  It 
is  di^wn  from  Professor  Winchell's  Geological  Report  for  1S60  : 


Localities. 

Lake  Huron 

Fort  Mackinac 

Fort  Holmes 

Robinson's  Folly 

Bluff  facing  Round  Island 

Summit  of  Sugar  Loaf 

Chimney  Rock 

Lover's  Leap 

Top  of  Arch  at  Arch  Rock 

Highest  Summit  of  Arch  Rock 

Top  of  Buttress  facing  Lake  at  Arch  Rock 
Principal  Plateau  of  Mackinac  Island. . . . 

Upper  Plateau  of  Mackinac  Island 

Lake  Superior 


Feet  Above 
Lake  Huron. 


127 

M7 
284 

HS 
140 
149 
los 

150 
294 

49 


Feet  Above 
the  Sea. 


578 
728 
897 
70s 
725 
862 
709 

723 
718 
727 
683 
728 
872 
627 


t 


148 


OLD   AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


'K 


;    n 

.  ■^  ■ "  :     ^  ■' 


CHAPTER  X. 


MACKINAC   AS    A   HEALTH   RESORT. 

Mackinac  as  a  health  resort  is  unsurpassed,  its  cool  air 
and  pure  water,  together  with  its  natural  beauties  and  historic 
associationij,  ai'e  just  what  are  needed  to  bring  back  the  glow 
of  health  to  the  taded  cheek,  and  send  the  warm  currents  of 
life  dancing  through  the  system  with  youthful  vigor. 

In  Mackinac,  you  eat  with  a  new  relish,  and  sleep  as  when 
a  child.  You  row,  you  ramble  like  boys  and  girls,  scarcely 
able  to  keep  your  buoyancy  within  bounds.  You  need  to  set 
a  double  guard  about  your  dignity,  lest  it  escape  you  entirely. 

But  it  is  unnecessary  for  us  to  bear  testimony  on  this  sub- 
ject, when  so  many  more  competent  witnesses  are  at  hand. 

The  following  letter  by  Dr.  Mills,  A.  A.  Surg.,  U.  S.  A., 
shows  the  philosophy  of  the  health-restoring  circumstances 
which  surround  the  invalid  on  this  island  : 

Fort  Mackinxc,  Micii.,  May  2,  1870. 
Jiev.  Jas.  A.   Van  Fleet . 

Dear  Sir, — In  complying  with  your  request  for  my  views 
on  Mackinac  as  a  resort  for  invalids,  I  will  be  as  brief  as  pos- 
sible. I  have  been  a  resident  upon  the  island  during  the  period 
of  nearly  three  years,  engaged  in  civil  and  military  practice, 
and  therefore  have  had  something  of  an  opportunity  for  forming 
an  opinion  upon  that  subject. 

In  the  first  place,  there  arc  two  governing  ideas  in  the 
selection  of  places  of  resort  for  those  in  ill  health.  If  possible 
that  locality  should  be  sought  which  will  most  probably  be  the 
means  of  a  permanent  cure.     When  such  a  result  is  beyond 


MACKINAC    AS   A    HEALTH    RESORT. 


149 


hope,  the  present  comfort  of  the  patient  stands  next  in  import- 
ance.    That  place,  therefore,  which  affords  the  greatest  num- 
ber of  health-giving  and   comfort-giving  elements,  will  meet 
the  wants  of  the  largest  class.     But  no  single  locality  can  be 
expected  to  meet  the  wants  of  all.     No  land  of  bliss,  where 
joys  are   unalloyed,  has  as  yet  been   discovered.     There   are 
certain  places  adapted  to  the  wants  of  particular  cases.     In  the 
selection   of  these,   accurate  knowledge   and  sound  judgment 
should  be  the  constant  guides.     The  hinly-burly,  hap-hazard 
manner  in  which  people  post  off  to  some  celebrated  locality, 
in  search  of  health,  is  an  illustration  of  the  kind  of  reasoning 
almost  unconsciously  employed  by  many,  who  upon  other  sub- 
jects are    considered    sound    thinkers :  the   old   doctrine    over 
again,  "  What's  good  for  one  tiling  must  be  good  for  another." 
Hence  the  crowds  which  throng  the  springs  and  the  wells,  all 
undergoing  the  same  internal  and  external  (!■  cnchings,  in  the 
endeavor  to  cui-e  almost  as  many  different  diseases  as  there  are 
people  on  the  grounds.     There  is  undoubtedly  much  benoht  to 
be  derived  from  the  judicious  use  of  water.     No  one  will  deny 
that  the  springs  of  the  country  are  the  sources  of  many  blebS- 
ings.     Yet  many  weak,   debilitated,   half  dead   men,  women 
and  children  have  had  the  last  sparks  of  vitality  drowned  out 
of  them,  in  the  blind  routine  of  water  cure  ;  while  others  with 
good  constitutions,  who  only  needed  a  thorough  cleansing  ot 
the  cutaneous  surfaces,  which  they  should  have  had  at  home, 
for  decency's  sake,  have  returned  to  the  bosom  of  their  families 
rejoicing  in  the  wonderful  efficacy  of  the  springs.     I  have  no 
word  of  condemnation  for  the   springs.     I   do  not  deny  the 
medicinal  qualities  of  many  of  them.     But  the   absurdity  of 
the  manner  in  which  they  are  resorted  to,  without  competent 
advice,  and  often  to  the  actual  injury  of  those  fondly  seeking  a 
cure,  must  be  obvious  to  all. 

Mackinac  is  available  as  a  place  of  resort  for  health  and 
pleasure  at  present  only  in  summer;  but  the  time  is  not  far 
distant  when  it  will  be  as  noted  as  a  resort  for  invalids  in  win- 
ter as  it  is  now  in  summer. 


w    ■ 


ui   i; 


H:  !' 


150 


OLD   AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


Its  position  geographically  and  hydrographically  is  such 
as  to  render  the  temperature  at  all  seasons  of  the  year  moderate 
and  uniform.  This  is  the  first  and  most  important  in  the  list 
of  health-restoring  and  health-preserving  influences  to  be 
enumerated  in  connection  with  this  place.  This  is  the  central 
fact,  around  which  all  the  others  arrange  themselves.  It  is  in 
the  mildness  and  uniformity  of  its  temperature  that  the  superi- 
ority of  Mackinac  as  a  jDlace  of  resort  exists.  It  is  this  that 
causes  thousands  to  come  here  annually  to  spend  the  "  heated 
term."  This  is  well  shown  by  an  examination  of  the  follow- 
ing table  : 


DEGREES   OF   MEAN,    MONTHLY,    AND    EXTREME    TEMPERATURE,    FOR   A 

SERIES    OF    YEARS.* 


LOCALITY. 


Mackinac   Island, 

Montreal 

Albany,  N.  Y.,..., 

Omaha,  Neb., 

Chicago, 

Detroit, 


Mich. 


<'P.^A^ 


be 


3  I  §■  tl!  o  I  u 


u  I : 


i9;iS  26:37;4,S|57;65  64  55  .(SLhIzj 
1416  2840  S3  66  70  fyVsg  4Sl32;ig 
•24  25  35  47  ""  '''''^7^  70  <^'  ^'g'iol'iS 
»Q  2.S  M  S-2  <'-2i7.?  76  75  ^'<''  5^1.3''  2'j 

24l2S'.5^,4'5'5''"''3i7'K«^''''"|49,.'?S|2Q' 
27|i7|3SS'3iS''^<56  7o|68i6oJ48|28|37| 


Philadelphia,  Pa., 1 13^35  4°  5' 'sy  69175173  6^54:44  35 

Cincinnati,  O., |  30  3i  44  58,61  71 I74I73  CvSls,  41  34 

St,  Paul,  Minn. I14I1831  46  sq  68  73  7'' 59  47  3^  '7 

St.  Louis,  Mo., !l.33'3Sl44SS;66  74,79177169:55411341 


V 


o 


23 
36 

^3 


1  " 


X   E  I  O 

-^"   6 
'A 

24 
37 
28 

7 

S 

20 
26 


90 
102 
99 


95 
98 
106  tig 

100    3S 

loS  i23 


♦Climatology  of  United  States,  by  Lorin  Blodget:  1857. 

By  this  table  it  will  be  seen  that  the  extremes  of  heat  and 
cold  are  not  only  not  as  great  in  Mackinac  as  in  other  places 
east  and  west  on  the  sajne  parallel,  but  even  in  places  much 
farther  south.  At  Montreal,  during  the  time  embraced  in  the 
table,  the  mercury  has  been  as  low  as  36  degrees  below  zero, 
and  as  high  as  102  above.  At  St.  Paul,  on  nearly  the  same 
parallel,  the  greatest  degree  of  cold  designated  is  57  degrees 
below  zero,  and  of  heat,  100  above.  At  St.  Louis,  hundreds 
of  miles  farther  south,  the  table  shows  that  the  mercury  has 
been  as  low  as  25  degrees  below  zero,  and  as  high  as  loS 
above.     By  looking  at  the  figures  opposite  Mackinac,  it  will  be 


MACKINAC   AS  A  HEALTH   RESORT. 


151 


seen  that  33  degrees  below  zero  is  the  lowest,  and  90  above 
the  highest  mark  of  the  mercury.  During  my  residence  here, 
however,  the  mercury  has  but  once  been  as  low  as  19  degrees 
below  zero.  This  was  during  the  winter  of  1S67  and  186S. 
During  the  winter  of  1S68  and  1S69,  16  degrees  below  zero 
was  the  coldest.  During  the  past  wmter  13  degrees  below 
occurred  but  once. 

Why  this  difierence  in  favor  of  Mackinac  ?     In  my  opin- 
ion it  is  owing  principally  to  the  influence  of  the  large  bodies 
of  water  which  surround  it ;  Lake  Superior  on  the  north-west, 
Huron  on  the  east  and  south,  and  Michigan  on  the  south  and 
west.     By  a  well  known  law  in  physics,  heat  is  absorbed  or 
rendei'ed  latent  in  the  passage  of  any  substance  from  the  solid 
to  the  fluid  and  from  the  fluid  to  the  gaseous  states ;  and  con- 
versely, heat  is  given  out  or  rendered  sensible  in  the  passage 
of  any  substance  from  tlie  gaseous  to  the  fluid,  and  from  the 
fluid  to  the  solid  states.     To  illustrate  :     Take  a  single  pound 
of  ice.     The  thermoineter  shows  its  temperature  to  be  32  de- 
grees Fahrenheit.     Now,  if  just  enough  heat  be  applied  to  this 
pound  of  ice  to  change  it  from  the  solid  to  the  fluid  state,  and 
the  temperature  of  the  water   thus  produced   is  immediately 
tested,  it  will  be  found  to  be  only  33  degrees  F.,  the  same  as 
found  in  testing  tlie  temperature  of  the  ice  before  the  applica- 
tion of  heat.     Here   has  been   an  expenditure  of  heat  in  the 
process  of  liquefaction.     By  accuuite  measurement  it  bus  been 
found  that  140  degrees  of  heat  are  necessary  for  this  change 
from  ice  to  water.     If,  again,  heat  is  applied  to  this  water,  the 
temperature  will  continue  to  rise  until  it  reaches  213  degrees, 
the  ordinary  boiling  point  of  water.     But  all  attempts  to  heat 
this  water  above  that  point  will  be  in  vain.     Why?     Because 
heat  is  necessary  for  the  transformation  of  water  into  steam, 
and  every  degree  of  heat  which  is  now  added  will  be  consumed 
or  rendered  latent  in  this   process.     The   reverse   process    is 
naturally  attended  by   the  opposite  result.     Hence  the  philos- 
ophy of  the  warming  of  buildings  by  steam.     Wherever  the 
steam  comes  in  contact  with  objects  sufficiently  cold  to  reduce 


152 


OLD   AND   NEW    MACKINAC. 


;i 


it  to  a  lower  degree  than  212,  it  immediately  becomes  con- 
densed into  water,  giving  out  its  surplus  heat.  The  same  is 
true  in  the  transformation  of  water  into  ice. 

In  summer  the  evaporating  surface  of  these  lakes  is  very 
extensive,  and  the  influence  on  the  climate  at  Mackinac  and 
places  thus  centrally  located  is,  as  a  consequence,  very  great. 
The  amount  of  water  which  escapes  into  the  air  as  vapor,  in  a 
single  summer  day,  from  the  surface  of  these  lakes,  would 
astonish  one  who  has  not  accurate  information  upon  this 
subject. 

Of  a  necessity  the  amount  of  heat  drawn  from  the  sur- 
rounding atmosphere  will  corres^oond.  In  winter,  in  accord- 
ance with  this  law,  the  changing  of  vapors  into  water,  and 
water  into  ice,  ojierates  in  the  opposite  direction,  and  heat  is 
given  out  or  rendered  sensible.  Thus  these  immense  bodies  of 
water  become  the  regulators  of  the  climate,  both  in  summer 
and  winter.  Not  only  are  great  extremes  of  heat  and  cold 
thus  prevented,  but  also  the  sudden  daily  changes  which  occur 
in  many  other  places,  to  the  great  discomfort  and  injury  of  all, 
and  especially  the  invalid. 

Growing  out  of  its  position  and  resulting  temperature  is 
another  important  item  in  the  consideration  of  Mackinac  as  a 
health  resort ;  i.  e.,  the  ■purity  and  btwyancy  of  the  atmos- 
phere. The  amount  of  heat  is  insufficient  for  the  extensive 
production  of  miasmatic,  disease-generating  exhalations,  which 
are  so  destructive  in  warmer  climates.  Even  if  this  were  not 
the  case,  the  absence  of  swamps  and  marshes,  and  disgusting 
cesspools,  sufHciently  insures  atmospaeric  purity.  The 
amount  of  oxygen  in  a  given  measure  of  air,  as  compared 
with  that  in  warmer  climates,  accounts,  in  part  at  least,  for  its 
buoyant,  exhilarating  etlects.  Tlrus,  in  cjnsequencc  of  the 
mild,  uniform  temperature,  the  atmosjDherc  in  summer  is  cool 
and  agreeable,  free  from  floating  poisons,  and  well  stocked 
with  life  and  health  giv'.ig  principles. 

The  water,  though  containing  considerable  lime,  is  free 
from  noxious  impurities.     The  pebbles  on  the  bottom  of  the 


MACKINAC    AS    A    HEALTH    RESORT. 


153 


lake  can  be  seen  when  the  lake  is  still,  on  a  fair  day,  at  the 
depth  of  many  feet.  Its  average  temperature  is  about  42  de- 
grees. In  favorable  localities,  however,  where  it  is  shallow 
and  the  rays  of  the  sun  are  direct  upon  it,  the  temperature  is 
raised  sufficiently  for  pleasant  bathing.  In  a  medical  point  of 
view,  these  lakes  furnish  a  very  important  article  of  food — 
trout  and  white  fish.  Nothing  is  better  calculated  to  meet  the 
wants  of  overtaxed  brains  and  nerves. 

As  a  summer  resort  it  is  probably  unsurpassed.  It  is 
easily  accessible  by  short  and  pleasant  water  routes,  and  the 
influences  which  cluster  around  the  lovely  spot  are  adapted 
equally  well  to  the  treatment  of  the  infirmities  of  the  mind  and 
body.  A  cheerful,  hopeful  state  of  mind  is  of  the  greatest 
importance  in  the  treatment  of  disease.  This  once  esta1)lished, 
the  physician  can  begin  to  feel  that  his  eftbrts  may  be  of  some 
avail ;  but  otherwise,  remedies  and  advice  alike  are  useless. 

The  view  of  the  island  at  a  distance,  if  approached  on  a 
plea.'anf  day,  either  from  Lake  Huron  or  Lake  Michigan,  is 
highly  pleasing,  especially  to  those  from  the  crowded  city  or 
the  interior  of  the  country.  The  valetudinarian  is  inclined  to 
forget  his  maladies  in  his  admiration  of  the  beauty  of  the  pic- 
ture before  him.  And  the  first  impressions  are  not  only  con- 
firmed by  a  sojourn  upon  the  island,  but  new  pleasures,  and 
new  sources  of  amusement  and  recreation,  are  constantly 
springing  up  to  engage  the  attention.  The  views  which  can 
easily  be  obtained  from  various  poitits,  and  of  which  one  never 
tires,  are  unsurpassed  in  beauty  and  love^'  .ess.  No  pen  can 
adequately  describe  them.  Again,  the  auady  walks  and  beau- 
tiful drives  which  radiate  from  the  ','illage  to  various  points  of 
natural  and  historical  interest,  are  the  sources  of  much  enjoy- 
ment. 

When  rock,  and  cave,  and  battle-field,  and  other  objects  of 
interest,  have  received  their  share  of  time  and  attention,  and  a 
change  is  desired,  the  MaciJnac  boats — famous  for  the  fiUc 
that  never  was  serious  accident  known  to  occur  to  one  of  them, 
when  handled  by  Mackinac  men — lie  waiting  nei'r  the  beach 

» 


154 


OLD   AND   NEW   MACKINAC. 


ready  for  an  excursion  upon  the  lake.  Round  Island,  Bois 
Blanc,  Mackinaw  City,  (Old  Mackinaw,)  Point  St.  Ignace, 
and  many  other  places  of  interest,  are  within  a  few  hours'  sail. 
Overcoat  and  gloves  for  gentlemen,  and  furs  for  ladies,  should 
be  the  invariable  companions,  no  matter  how  warm  and  pleas- 
ant the  day,  for  winds  are  fickle  and  the  hour  of  return  uncer- 
tain. A  basket  of  edibles  will  sometimes  meet  an  unexpected 
demand.  Gun  and  fishing-tackle  will  add  to  the  interest  of  the 
occasion,  especially  if  the  trip  extends  into  the  duck  and  brook- 
trout  regions. 

If  exercise  of  the  muscle  as  well  as  diversion  of  mind  is 
desired,  and  this  is  a  healthy  combination,  a  supply  of  skiiVs 
is  ever  at  hand.  By  these  a  trip  to  the  surrounding  islands,  or 
the  noted  places  along  the  beacli  around  Mackinac  can  be 
safely  made  in  a  few  hours.  But  those  who  wish  to  make 
more  extended  or  more  rapid  voyages  can  avail  themselves  of 
the  small  steamers  which  belong  in  this  locality.  Some  have 
complained  of  the  mosquitoes  and  black  flies  in  their  sallies  to 
the  main  land,  but  it  is  said  that  the  odor  of  carbolic  acid  re- 
moves this  annoyance.  From  my  experience  in  the  use  of  the 
article  in  hospital  practice,  I  am  inclined  to  think  this  will 
accomplish  the  purpose. 

These  are  some  of  the  favorable  circumstances  which  sur- 
round the  invalid  at  Mackinac.  It  will  be  seen  at  once  that 
they  take  a  wide  range  in  their  therapeutic  application.  I  have 
great  confidence  in  medicines  timely  iXWiX  judiciously  adminis- 
tered. But  in  very  many,  especially  chronic  cases,  I  have  still 
greater  confidence  in  the  efficacy  of  these  hygienic  agencies. 
It  would  be  far  from  rational,  however,  to  discard  either.  The 
combination  of  the  two,  in  accordance  with  the  necessities  of 
each  case,  will  be  followed  by  the  happiest  results.  Science 
and  Practice  alone  are  competent  to  decide  the  proportion  of 
each  required. 

One  will  now  almost  instinctively  come  to  something  of  a 
conclusion  as  to  the  class  of  cases  to  which  this  place  is  best 
adapted.     In  fact  the  hygienic  influences  are  so  varied  in  char- 


MACKINAC   AS   A   HEALTH   RESORT. 


155 


acter,  so  extensive  in  range,  tliat  there  is  very  little  liability 
to  mistake.  iJuring  my  residence  hero,  very  few  invalids 
hnve  come  under  my  notice  who  have  not  received  more  or 
less  benefit  before  their  departure.  Instead,  therefore,  of  at- 
tempting to  enumerate  the  diseases  or  conditions  to  the  treat- 
ment of  which  this  place  is  favorable,  it  will  take  much  less 
time  to  designate  those  to  which  a  sojourn  here  is  thought  to 
be  unfavorable. 

It  is  perhaps  unnecessary  to  say  that  in  all  acute  cases  of 
Inflammation,  the  patient  should  remain  at  home  until  the 
crisis  is  passed.  When  the  stage  of  debility  comes  on,  how- 
ever, Mackinac  may  prove  highly  beneficial  in  promoting  a 
rapid  recovery. 

I  would  advise  no  one  who  is  thought  to  be  rapidly  ap- 
proaching dissolution  to  think  of  coming  here  as  a  last  resort. 
The  unavoidable  fatigue  and  exposure  incident  to  the  journey, 
will  greatly  overbalance  all  the  good  results  to  be  hoped  for. 
Home,  quiet,  peaceful  home,  is  the  place  for  such. 

Those  in  the  last  stages  of  Consumption  are  not  usually 
benefitted.  Invalids  of  this  class  seem  to  think  the  air  •'  lou 
strong"  for  their  "  weak  lungs,"  to  use  their  own  terms.  The 
sot  "cwhat  increased  moisture  of  the  atmosphere,  over  th'at  of 
places  inland,  is  also  supposed  to  act  unfavorably. 

Those  suffering  from  Asthma  are  in  some  instances  ren- 
dered more  comfortable,  and  in  others  less.  It  is  impossible  to 
say  what  the  effect  will  be  until  the  trial  is  made. 

Rheumatism  is  not  usually  a  severe  disease  here,  but  it  is 
perhaps  more  frequent  than  any  other. 

Intermittent,  RemiLent,  and  Typhoid  Fever  are  very  sel- 
dom, if  ever,  known  to  originate  here  ;  but  occasionally  those 
coming  from  miasmatic  districts,  upon  their  arrival,  show 
symptoms  of  these  disorders,  in  a  mild  form.  They  come 
charged  with  a  poison  and  the  change  is  the  occasion  of  its 
working  oft'.  This  is  usually  soon  over  with,  however,  and  no 
more  fever  and  ague  is  heard  of  until  a  new  stock  of  the  ma- 
larial poison  is  obtained  outside.     This  was  quite  forcibly  illus- 


:fi 


156 


OLI>   AND   NEW    MACKINAC. 


P 


tratcd  in  the  cases  of  several  soldiers  now  stationed  at  this 
post.  This  company  arrived  here  from  New  Orleans  in  May, 
1S69.  During  the  three  months  following  there  were  several 
cases  of  Intermittent  Fever.  But  in  every  instance  these  cases 
were  easily  controlled  in  two  or  three  days,  and  relapses  were 
very  unusual. 

I  have   not  seen  a  well   marked  case  of  Typhoid  Fever  on 
the  island. 

In  most  Chronic  Diseases  this  locality  usually  proves 
highly  beneficial.  The  supporting  of  the  vital  powers  I  •  one 
great  object  to  be  aimed  at  in  the  treatment  of  all  cases — 
especially  chronic.  I  am  not  one  of  those,  however,  who,  in 
their  blind  adoration  of  "  Supporting  Treatment"  forget  the 
specific  disease,  the  cause  perhaps  of  the  whole  difficulty,  and 
neglect  its  treatment,  when  it  is  possible  to  reach  it.  The  two 
must  go  hand  in  hand.  There  are  general  remedies  which 
apply  to  almost  all  cases  ;  at  the  same  time  each  case  requires 
additional  specific  treatment  according  to  character  of  the  spe- 
cific disease,  age,  sex,  temperament,  and  a  thousand  other  cir- 
cumstances which  go  to  make  up  the  case.  As  the  science  of 
the  practice  of  medicine  advances,  the  great,  and  imtil  recently 
quite  unrecognized  truth,  stands  forth  in  more  glowing  light ; 
that  cases  are  to  be  treated  and  not  diseases  alone.  The  dis- 
ease is  only  a  part,  often  a  small  part,  of  what  goes  to 
make  up  the  case.  Medication  therefore,  though  it  properly 
holds  a  secondary  therapeutic  relation  as  compared  with  gene- 
ral hygienic  measures,  is  none  the  less  important.  Both  are 
essential. 

In  recommending  this  place  to  invalids,  I  would  refer 
especially  to  that  large  class  of  cases  which  comes  under  the 
head  of  general  debility.  It  is  unnecessary  to  go  into  exten- 
sive specifications.  They  are  at  once  recognized  in  men, 
women,  and  children,  by  a  weakly,  sickly  appearance,  low 
vital  powers,  feeble  pulse,  coated  tongue,  pale  or  sallow  skin, 
want  of  appetite,  the  functions  of  the  various  organs  of  the 
body  inadequately  performed  and  vario'   ;  other  unhealthy  con- 


MACKINAC    AS    A    HEALTH    KFISOKT. 


157 


ditions.  No  better  place  can  be  found  for  sickly  chlerotic  girls 
and  puny  boys  ;  worn  out  men  and  women,  whether  suffering 
from  overworked  brain  or  muscle.  No  better  jolace  can  be 
found  for  tliosc  inclined  to  Ilypocliondriacy.  A  change  from 
the  tiresome  sameness  of  home  scenes   cannot  fail  to  do  good. 

Those  cases  of  consumption  which  are  not  far  advanced 
are  often  greatly  benefitted. 

Bowel  complaints  seldom  prevail.  Hence  this  is  a  good 
place  for  infants  and  children  during  the  hot  summer  months. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  continue  the  enumeration.  I  have 
attempted  thus  hastily  to  put  forth  some  general  ideas  which 
might  serve  as  guides  to  those  of  your  readers  who  may  have 
occasion  to  avail  themselves  of  a  resort  for  health  or  pleasure. 

I  liave  the  honor  to  be  sir,  very  respectfully,  your  obedient 

servant, 

H.  R.  Mills,  M.  D., 

Post  Siirgeon. 


The  following  extracts  are  from  the  pen  of  Daniel  Drake, 
M.  D.,  who,  in  a  professional  cajDacily,  visited  the  island  in 
1842.  In  his  "  Discourses  on  Northern  Lakes  and  Southern 
Invalids  "  we  find  the  following  : 

"  When  the  south-west  winds,  which  have  traversed  tlie 
vast  plains  separating  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  from  the  lakes,  reach 
the  shores  of  the  latter,  they  are  necessarily  dry  and  hot. 
Hence  the  temperature  of  Buffalo,  Erie,  Cleveland,  Sandusky, 
Toledo,  Detroit,  and  Chicago,  in  the  average  latitude  of  43°, 
is  quite  as  great  as  their  position  shoidd  experience — greater, 
perhaps,  than  the  traveler  from  Louisiana  or  Carolina  would 
expect.  But  the  duration  of  these  winds  is  at  no  time  very 
long,  and  whenever  they  change  to  any  point  of  the  compass 
north  or  west,  they  bring  down  a  fresh  and  cool  atmosphere  to 
revive  the  constitutions  of  all  whom  they  had  wilted  down. 
These  breathings  from  the  north  descend  from  the  highlands 
around  Lake  Superior,  which  are  nearly  as  elevated  above  the 
sea  as  the  mountains  of  Pennsylvania,  and  stretch  oft'  beyond 


f( 


I5S 


OLD    AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


the  sources  of  the  Missi.ssippi  to  the  Rocky  Mountains.  In 
passing  over  that  hike,  witli  Alichigan  and  Huron  immediately 
south  of  it,  the  temperature  of  which,  in  summer,  as  we  have 
already  seen,  is  less  tlian  60°,  these  winds  sufler  little  increase 
of  heat,  and  become  so  charged  with  moisture  from  the  extend- 
ed watery  surface  as  to  exert  on  the  feelings  of  the  people  along 
the  southern  shores  of  Erie  and  Michi<;aa  a  most  refreshing;  in- 
fluence. 

"From  the  hour  that  the  voyager  enters  Lake  Huron,  at 
the  head  of  St.  Clair  River,  or  Michigan,  at  Chicago,  he  ceases 
however,  to  feel  the  need  of  such  breezes  from  the  north-west, 
for  the  latitude  which  he  has  then  attained,  in  connection  with 
the  great  extent  of  the  deep  waters,  secures  to  him  an  invigorat- 
ing atmosphere,  even  while  summer  rages  with  a  withering  en- 
ergy in  the  South.  The  axis  of  each  of  these  lakes  is  nearl}'  in 
the  meridian,  and  every  turn  made  by  the  wheels  of  his  boat 
carries  him  further  Into  the  temperate  and  genial  climate  of 
the  upper  lakes.  Entering  it  by  either  of  the  portals  just  men- 
tioned, he  soon  passes  the  latitude  of  44°,  and  has  then  escaped 
from  the  region  of  miasmas,  mosquitoes,  congestive  fevers,  calo- 
mel, intermittants,  ague  cakes,  liver  diseases,  jaundice,  cholera 
morbus,  dyspepsia,  blue  devils,  and  duns ! — on  the  whole  of 
which  he  looks  back  with  gay  indifierence,  if  not  a  feeling  of 
good-natured  contempt.  • 

"  Ever3'\vhere  on  the  shores  of  the  lakes,  from  Ontario  to 
Superior,  if  the  general  atmosj^here  be  calm  and  clear,  there  is, 
in  summer,  a  refreshing  lake  and  land  breeze  :  the  former  com- 
mencing in  the  forenoon,  and,  with  a  capricious  temjjer,  con- 
tinuing most  of  the  day  ;  the  latter  setting  in  at  night,  after  the 
radiation  from  the  ground  has  reduced  its  heat  below  that  of 
tlie  water.  These  breezes  are  highly  acceptable  to  the  voyager 
while  in  the  lower  lake  region,  and  by  no  means  to  be  despised 
after  he  reaches  the  upper. 

"  But  the  summer  climate  of  the  lakes  is  not  the  only 
source  of  benefit  to  invalids,  for  the  agitation  imparted  by  the 
by  the  boat  on  voyages  of  several  days'  duration,  through  waters 


-yt 


MACKINAC    AS    A    HEAI/ni    IIRSOUT. 


159 


which  are  never  stagnant  and  sometimes  rolling,  will  be  found 
among  the  most  efficient  means  of  restoring  health  in  many 
chronic  diseases,  especially  those  of  a  nervous  character,  such 
hysteria  and  hypochoiuhiacism. 

"  Another  source  of  benefit  is  the  excitement  imparteil  by 
the  voyage  to  the  faculty  of  observation.  At  a  watering-place 
all  the  features  of  the  surrounding  scenerv  are  soon  familiarized 
to  the  eye,  which  then  merely  wanders  over  the  commingled 
throngs  of  valetudinarians,  doctors,  dancers,  idlers,  gamblers, 
coquettes,  and  dandies,  whence  it  soon  returns  to  inspect  the 
infirmities  or  tedium  vitcc  of  its  possessor ;  but  on  protracted 
voyages  through  new  and  fresh  regions,  curiosity  is  stirred  up 
to  the  highest  pitch,  and  pleasantly  gratified  by  tlie  hourly  un- 
folding of  fresh  aspects  of  nature — some  new  blending  of 
land  and  lake  ;  a  group  of  islands  diflcrent  from  the  last ; 
aquatic  fields  of  wild  rice  and  lilies ;  a  rainbow  walking  on  the 
'  face  of  the  deep  ;'  a  water-spout,  or  a  shifting  series  of  painted 
clouds  seen  in  the  kaleidoscope  of  heaven. 

"  But  the  North  has  attractions  of  a  difierent  kind,  which 
should  draw  into  its  summer  bosom  those  who  seek  health  and 
recreation  in  travel.  From  Ontario  to  Michigan  the  voyager 
passes  in  the  midst  of  spots  consecrated  to  the  heart  of  every 
American,  and  deeply  interesting  to  all  who  delight  to  study 
the  history  of  their  native  land.  The  shores  and  waters  of  the 
lakes,  so  often  reddened  with  the  blood  of  those  who  fought  and 
died  in  the  cause  of  their  country,  will  present  to  the  traveler  of 
warm  and  patriotic  feelings  scenes  which  he  cannot  behold 
without  emotion,  under  which  real  diseases  may  abate,  and  the 
imaginary  be  forgotten." 

After  briefly  alluding  to  the  mixed  French  and  Indian  pop- 
ulation around  the  head  of  the  lakes,  he  thus  continues : 

"  But  a  different  inhabitant,  of  more  interest  than  either  to 
the  dyspeptic  and  the  gourmand,  is  the  celebrated  white-fish, 
which  deserves  to  be  called  by  its  classical  name,  coregonus 
albus^  which,  liberally  translated,  signifies  food  of  the  nymphs. 
Its  flesh,  which  in  the  cold  and  clear  waters  of  the  lake,  organ- 


f.t' 


1 60 


OLD    AND    NEW   MACKINAC. 


^' 


ized  and  imbued  with  life,  is  liable  but  to  this  objection — that 
he  who  tastes  it  once  will  thenceforth  be  unable  to  relish  that 
of  any  other  fish. 

"  The  island  of  Mackinac  is  the  last,  and,  of  the  whole,  the 
most  important  summer  residence  to  which  we  can  direct  the 
attention  of  tlie  infirm  and  the  fashionable.  True,  it  has  no 
mineral  springs,  but  living  streams  of  pure  water,  cooled  down 
to  the  temperature  of  44"^,  gushing  from  its  lime-rock  precipices, 
and  an  atmosphere  never  sultry  or  malarious,  supercedes  all 
necessity  for  nauseating  solutions  of  iron,  sulphur,  and  epsom 
salts.  An  ague,  contracted  below,  has  been  known  to  cease 
even  before  the  patient  had  set  his  foot  on  the  island,  as  a  bad 
cold  evaporates  under  the  warm  sun  in  a  voyage  to  Cuba.  Its 
rocky,  thougli  not  infertile,  surface,  presents  l)ut  few  decom- 
posable matters,  and  its  summer  heats  are  never  great  enough 
to  convert  those  few  into  miasms. 

"  Situated  in  the  western  extremity  of  Huron,  within  view 
of  the  s<:raits  which  connect  that  lake  with  Michigan,  and  al- 
most in  sight,  if  forest  did  not  interpose,  of  the  portals  of  Lake 
Superior,  this  celebrated  island  has  long  been,  as  it  must  con- 
tinue to  be,  the  capital  of  the  upper  lakes.  The  steamboats 
which  visit  the  rapids  of  the  St.  Mary  and  Green  Bay,  not  less 
than  the  daily  line  from  Buffalo  to  Milwaukee  and  Chicago,  are 
found  in  its  harbor,  and  the  time  cannot  be  remote  wlien  a 
small  packet  will  ply  regularly  between  it  and  the  first.  By 
these  boats  the  luxuries  of  the  Soutli,  brought  fresh  and  succu- 
lent as  when  first  gathered,  are  supjjlied  every  day.  But  the 
potatoes  of  this  island,  rivalling  those  of  the  banks  of  the  Shan- 
non, and  tlie  white-fish  and  trout  of  the  surrounding  waters, 
yielding  only  to  those  of  Lake  Superior,  render  all  foreign  deli- 
cacies superfluous.  We  must  caution  the  gourmand,  however, 
against  tlie  excessive  use  of  t"ort,  {sal/no  amct/iystcs^)  ^vhich 
arc  said  to  produce  drowsiness ,  for  he  who  visits  Mackinac 
should  sleep  but  little,  lest  tome  -ene  of  interest  should  pass 
away  unobserved." 


MACKIXAC    AS    A   HEALTH    UESORT. 


l6l 


The  same  author,  in  his  "  Diseases  of  the  Mississippi  Val- 
ley," thus  alludes  to  Mackinac  : 

"  The  three  great  reservoirs  of  clear  and  cold  water — 
Lakes  Huron,  Michigan,  and  Superior,  with  the  island  of 
Mackinac  in  their  hydrographical  centre — offer  a  delightful  hot 
weather  asylum  to  all  invalids  who  need  an  escape  from  crowd- 
ed cities,  paludal  exhalations,  sultry  climates,  and  officious  med- 
ication. Lake  Erie  lies  too  far  south,  aud  is  bordered  with  too 
many  swamps,  to  be  included  in  the  salutiferous  group.  The 
voyage  from  Buffalo,  Cleveland,  or  Sandusky,  on  that  lake,  or 
from  Chicago  or  Milwaukee,  on  Lake  Michigan,  may  afford, 
should  the  wa'er  be  agitated,  all  the  benefits  of  sea-sickness, 
without  its  ted.'ous  prolongation.  On  reaching  Mackinac  an 
agreeable  change  of  climate  is  at  once  experienced,  and  the 
bodily  feeling  is  heightened  by  the  emotions  which  the  evidence 
and  consciousness  of  having  retreated  upon  an  island  raise  in 
the  mind  of  one  who  has  not  before  enjoyed  the  novelty  of  an 
insular  life.  To  his  jaded  sensibilities  all  around  him  is  fresh 
and  refreshing  ;  a  feeling  of  security  comes  over  him,  and  when, 
from  the  rocky  battlements  of  Fort  Mackinac,  he  looks  down 
upon  the  surrounding  waters,  they  seem  a  moat  of  defense 
against  the  host  of  annoyances  f'om  which  he  had  sought  a 
refuge.  Thus  the  curative  stite  of  mind  begins  to  act  on  his 
body  from  the  moment  of  his  landing,  and  if  he  be  a  person  of 
intelligence  and  taste,  this  salutary  mental  excitement  will  not 
soon  die  away ;  for  the  historic  associations,  not  less  than  the 
scenery  of  this  island,  are  well  fitted  to  maintain  it. 

"From  the  summit  of  the  island  the  eye  rests  upon  a  num- 
ber of  spots  consecrated  to  military  history.  But  the  natural 
scenery  is  still  better  fitted  to  make  the  invalid  forget  his  ailments. 
Several  agreeable  and  exciting  boat  voyages  maybe  made  to  the 
neighboring  coasts,  from  eacli  of  winch  a  new  aspect  may  be 
had,  and  the  island  itself,  although  but  nine  miles  in  circuit,  af- 
fords opportunities  for  a  great  variety  of  rambling  on  foot.  In 
these  excursions  he  may  ascend  to  the  apex  of  the  island,  once 
the  site  of  a  fort.     From  this  summit,  elevated  far  above  all  that 


I 


162 


OLD    AND    XEW   AIACKIXAC. 


■m  ■' 


>k-'' 


surrounds  it,  the  panorama  is  such  as  would  justify  the  epithet 
to  Mackinac — Qiieen  of  the  Isles.  To  the  west  are  the  indent- 
ed shores  of  the  upper  peninsula  of  Michigan ;  to  the  south, 
those  of  the  lower,  presenting  in  the  interior  a  distant  and 
smoky  line  of  elevated  table-land ;  up  the  straits  green  islets 
may  be  seen  peeping  above  the  vvatcrs ;  directly  in  front  of  the 
harbor  Round  Island  forms  a  beautiful  foreground,  while  the 
larger,  I3ois  Blanc,  with  its  light-house,  stretches  off  to  the  east ; 
and  to  the  north  ai'e  other  islands  at  varying  distances,  which 
comjolete  the  archipelago. 

"  When  the  observer  directs  his  eye  upon  the  waters  more 
than  the  land,  and  the  day  is  fair,  with  moderate  wind,  he  finds 
the  surface  as  variable  in  its  tints  as  if  clothed  in  a  robe  of 
changeable  silk.  Green  and  blue  are  tlie  governing  hues,  but 
they  flow  into  each  other  with  such  facility  and  frequency  that 
while  still  contemplating  a  particular  spot,  it  seems,  as  if  by 
magic,  transformed  into  another ;  but  these  mid-day  beauties 
vanish  before  those  of  the  setting  sun,  when  the  boundless  hori- 
zon of  lake  and  land  seeins  girt  around  with  a  fiery  zone  of 
clouds,  and  the  brilliant  drapery  of  the  skies  paints  itself  upon 
the  surface  of  the  waters.  Brief  as  they  are  beautiful,  these 
evening  glories,  like  spirits  of  the  air,  quickly  pass  away,  and 
the  gray  mantle  of  night  warns  the  beholder  to  depart  for  the 
village  while  he  may  yet  make  his  way  along  a  narrow  and 
rocky  path,  beset  with  tufts  of  prickly  juniper.  Having  re- 
freshed himself  for  an  hour,  he  may  stroll  out  upon  the  beach 
and  listen  to  the  serenade  of  the  waters.  Wave  after  wave  will 
break  at  his  feet  over  tlie  white  pebbles,  and  return  as  limpid 
as  it  came.  Up  the  straits  he  will  see  the  evening  star  dancing 
on  the  ruffled  surface,  and  the  loose  sails  of  the  lagging  schoon- 
er flapping  in  the  fitful  land-breeze,  while  the  milky  way — 
Death's  Path  of  the  red  man — will  dimly  appear  in  the 
waters  before  him  !" 

The  following  extracts  are  just  to  the  point,  and  will  meet 
with  a  hearty  response  from  the  thousands  who  have  experi- 
enced similar  sensations  in  visiting  Mackinac  : 


MACKINAC    AS    A    HEALTH    RESORT. 


163 


"  Mackinaw,  Mich.,  August  7,  1856. 

*  *  *  "  Yours  of  July  20th  has  been  forwarded  to  me 
at  this  place,  whither  I  have  come  in  search  of  the  fugitive, 
health — at  least,  to  escape  from  the  debilitations  of  our  summer 
heats.  I  wish  you  were  here  !  It  is  a  fortnight  to-day  since  we 
arrived,  and  such  paradisiacal  weather  as  we  have  had !  just 
warm  enough  not  to  be  cold,  and  just  cold  enough  not  to  be 
warm.  Only  one  thing  is  wanting  to  me,  and  I  should  thrive 
like  a  green  bay  tree,  and  that  is  the  home  diet. 

"  Last  night  we  had  some  commotion  among  the  elements, 
and  to-day  it  is  cloudy,  and  a  fire  is  comfortabie.  But  a  few 
whifTs  of  this  air  would  make  your  luugs  give  a  hygienic  laugh, 
I  am  sorry  to  hear  there  are  any  symptoms  in  your  throat  or 
elsewhere  which  give  3'ou  present  discomfort  or  forebodings.  I 
am  afraid  of  that  Eastern  climate  for  your  lungs.  I  do  not  be- 
lieve that  air  will  ever  agree  with  you.  It  requires  a  Boreas  to 
blow  it,  and  none  but  a  Boreas  can  breathe  it.     *     *     * 

"  Horace  Mann." 


"Mackinaw,  Mich.,  August  6,  1S57. 
*  *  *  "  Here  we  all  are  at  Mackinaw,  and  enjoying 
ourselves  too  well  not  to  tell  you  about  it,  and  to  wish  you  were 
here  with  us.  The  climate,  the  air,  etc.,  perform  the  promise 
made  last  year,  and,  as  all  the  family  arc  with  me,  I  enjoy  vastly 
more  than  I  did  last  year.  I  never  brcathea  "uch  air  before, 
and  this  must  be  some  that  was  clear  out  of  Eden,  and  did  not 
get  cursed.  I  sleep  every  night  under  sheet,  blanket,  and  cov- 
erlet, and  no  day  is  too  warm  for  smart  walking  and  vigorous 
bowling.  The  children  are  craz}'  with  animal  spirits,  and  eat 
in  such  a  way  as  to  demonstrate  the  epigastric  paradox  that 
the  quantity  contained  may  be  greater  than  the  container.  I 
verily  believe  if  you  would  spend  one  summer  here — say  from 
about  the  middle  of  July  to  the  middle  of  September — it  would 
make  your  brain  as  good  as  Samuel  Downer's  brain  ever  was 
since  it  occupied  its  present  cranium,  and  that  is  saying  a  great 
deal.     *     *     *  Horace  M.vnn." 


164 


OLD   AND    NEAV   MACKINAC. 


f. 


CHAPTER  XI. 


If 


^l 


MACKINAW   CITY. 

The  Straits  of  ISIackinaw,  as  we  have  seen,  have  been  the 
theatre  of  interesting  and  exciting  events  from  the  earliest  times 
down  to  the  present.  While  the  whole  southern  portion  of  the 
State  was  yet  a  wilderness  which  no  white  man  had  ever  pene- 
trated, Mackinaw  was  the  home  of  the  missionary,  the  trader, 
and  the  soldier,  and  the  center  of  a  valuable  and  fast  increasing 
traffic  with  the  Indians  of  the  North-west. 

And  it  was  from  Mackinaw,  as  a  center,  that  colonization 
spread  through  the  surrounding  country.  Detroit  was  settled 
in  I'joi,  by  Cadilac,  who  for  several  years  had  commanded  at 
Mackinaw.  The  history  of  Wisconsin  and  Minnesota,  as  well 
as  other  Northwestern  States,  must  begin  with  a  notice  of  this 
point,  because  the  earliest  settlers  of  these  States  started  out 
from  Mackinaw,  and  the  j^eriod  is  yet  within  the  memory  of 
many  now  living  on  tliis  island  when  Chicago  came  to  Macki- 
naw for  supplies. 

These  arc  significant  facts.  The  early  Jesuits  and  tradei's 
fixed  upon  Mackinaw  as  a  basis  of  their  missionary  and  com- 
mercial operations,  not  by  mere  chance,  but  because  of  its  nat- 
ural advantages.  Mackinaw  is  a  historical  centre  because  it  is 
a  geographical  and  commercial  center.  Nature  alone  has  given 
it  its  advantages  and  made  it  what  it  has  been  in  history.  For 
a  series  of  years,  however,  its  natural  advantages  seemed  to  be 
overlooked,  and  the  surging  wave  of  poj^ulation  rolled  across 
vSouthern  Michigan  and  so  on  to  the  westward.  Yet  it  has 
never  been  quite  forgotten,  and  at  the  present  time  we  believe 
it  to  be  gradually  rising  into  favor,  owing  to  the  fact  that  it  is 
better  kno\vn  and  better  appreciated  than  ever  before. 


m 


MACKINAW    CITY. 


165 


But  we  do  not  propose  to  enter  into  any  elaborate  discus- 
sion of  its  merits.     We  wish   simply  to   set  forth  a  few  facts 
relative  to  an   enternrlse  just  now   attracting  some   attention. 
Ferris,   in   his  "  States  and  Territories  of  the   Great   West," 
makes  the  following  mention   of  the  straits :  "  If  ons  were  to 
point  out  on  the  map  of  North  America  a  site  for  a  great  cen- 
tral city  in  the  lake  region,  it  would  be  in  the  immediate  vi- 
cinity OF  THE  Straits   of  Miciiilimackinac.     A  city  so 
located  would  have  the  command  of  the  mineral  trade,  the 
Jishcries^  the  furs^  and  the  lumber  of  the  entire  North.     It 
might  become  the  metropolis  of  a  great  commercial  empire. 
It  would  be  the   Venice  of  the  lakes."      In   1S53  !Mr.   Edgar 
Conkling,  then  of  Cincinnati,  with  something  of  the  same  ap- 
preciation  of  this   point,  secured  a  large  tract  of  land  on  the 
south  side  of  the   straits.      In    1S57-5S  he  surveyed  the  city 
site,  but  the  financial  revulsion  at  that  time  and  the  war  which 
soon  followed  prevented  further  ojDcrations  until  the  present. 
During  the  past  winter  a  good  dock  has  been  constructed  and 
preparations  are  fast  being  made  to  build  up  the  new  city. 
The  streets,  as  surveyed,  arc  eighty  feet  in  width,  and  the  ave- 
nues one  hundred  and  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet,  respectively, 
and  are  to  be  forever  unobstructed  by  improvements  of  any 
kind,  shade  trees  alone  excepted.     The  lots,  with  the  exception 
of  those  in  fractional  blocks  are  fifty  by  one  hundred  and  fifty 
feet.     Old  Mackinaw  Point,  where  may  still  be  seen  the  ruins 
of  the  old  "Fort  Miciiilimackinac,"  has   been  resp""cd  for  a 
park.     It  is  now  in  a  state  of  nature,  but  in  this  instance  nature 
has  done  more  unassisted  by  art  than  is  often  accomplished  by 
both  combined.     A  richer  and  more  beautiful  variety  of  ever- 
greens can  nowhere  be  found  than  here,  and  "  when  the  skill- 
ful hand  of  the  horticulturist  has  marked  its  outlines  and  thread- 
ed it  with  avenues  and  footpaths,  pruned  its  trees  and  carpeted 
its  surface  with  green,  it  will  present  the  very  perfection  of  all 
that  constitutes  a  park   deligluful."       Suitable  blocks  and  lots 
for  county  and  city  buildings,  school-houses,  churches,  and  insti- 
tutions of  learning  and  charity,  will  be  donated  for  their  respect- 


1 66 


OLD   AND   NEW    MACKINAC. 


ive  pui'poscs  whenever  the  proper  authorities  are  prepared  to 
select  suitable  sites.  There  are  three  good  harbors  on  the  east, 
north,  and  west  sides  of  the  city,  respectively.  The  soil  is 
sandy  and  the  land  sufficiently  elevated  above  the  level  of  the 
water  to  warrant  an  entire  absence  of  mud  forever.  "There 
are  no  marshes,  no  tide-covered  sands,  no  flood-washed  banks, 
no  narrow  and  isolated  rocks  or.  ridges  to  intercei^t  the  progress 
of  commercial  growth  and  activity.  On  the  contraiy,  the  lake 
rises  under  the  heaviest  rains  but  little,  and  breaks  its  waves  on 
a  dry  shore  raised  far  above  its  level." 

At  a  comparatively  recent  date  large  ac)ditions  have  been 
made  to  this  property,  so  that  now  the  real  estate  interests  of 
the  enterprise  cover  an  area  of  about  thirty-fi'.'e  thousand  acres, 
seven  thousand  of  which  lie  on  the  north  side,  upon  the  upper  jDe- 
ninsula.  Much  of  this  land  abounds  in  the  elements  of  wealth 
and  prosperity.  There  may  be  found  peat  and  hard  wood  suit- 
able for  smelting  and  manufacturing  iron  and  copper;  gyp- 
sum in  abundance  ;  "  stone  for  water  lime,  building  stone,  and 
building  lime,"  while  all  geologists  agree  that  the  salt  formation 
underneath  its  surface  will  richly  reward  all  who  turn  their  at- 
tention to  the  manufactine  of  that  indispensable  article. 

The  noiicy  of  the  proprietor  of  this  enterprise  is  at  once 
liberal  and  enlightened.  Every  legal  measure  will  be  taken  to 
exclude  forc'er  the  sale  of  alcohol  as  a  beverage,  thus  insuring 
the  future  inb.abitants  freedom  from  midnight  brawls  and  drunk- 
en revels.  The  public  wants  are  to  '.,e  liberally  provided  for, 
and  the  whole  property  finally  devoted  to  the  building  up  and 
endowment  of  a  '•'•  grand^  naiiotial^  unscctarian^  Christian 
University,"  and  will  be  placed  'n  the  hands  of  responsible 
trustees  whenever  the  public  is  t  ;ady  to  make  the  enterprise 
its  own.  Such  arc  the  facts  as  they  have  been  communicated 
to  us. 

The  idea  of  a  univcisity  at  thcr  straits  may  strike  some  as 
premature  and  uncalled  for,  bwt  two  consiilerations  are  alone 
more  than  sufficient  to  justify  an  immediate  advance  in  that  di- 
rection.    First,  the  health  of  this  region  is  such  as  to  ensure  the 


i;        *■ 


'W 


MACKIXAW   CITY. 


167 


hisbest  success  of  such  an  institution.  The  isothermal  line  of 
Mackinaw  is  that  which  has  proved  the  most  favorable,  both  in 
Europe  and  America,  for  intellectual  development. 

This  all-important  and  only  truly  fundamental  idea  of 
health  is  too  often  forgotten  in  the  location  of  institutions  of 
learning,  and,  as  a  consequence,  the  mind  is  frequently  devel- 
oped only  at  the  expense  of  the  body.  Men  become  intellec- 
tual giants  and  physical  pigmies  at  one  and  the  same  time. 
But  the  invigorating  atmospliere  of  Mackinaw  City  will  do  for 
the  physical  part  just  \vhat  a  thorough  university  course  will  do 
for  the  mental,  and  thui  a  symmetrical  and  perfect  development 
will  be  secured.  The  facts  elucidated  in  the  previous  chapter 
will  prove  this. 

The  health  of  Mackinaw  is  not  disputed.  A  second  fact 
we  regard  as  equally  indisputable.  A  few  years  will  people 
Northern  Michigan  and  the  unoccupied  territory  of  the  North- 
west witli  tens  of  thousands,  who  will  need  just  such  an  insti- 
tution as  the  one  proposed.  And  besides  this  "  coming  popu- 
lation," hundreds  of  the  sons  and  daughters  of  our  more  south- 
ern and  much  less  healthful  cities  and  towns  will  be  but  too 
glad  to  resort  to  even-tempered  Mackinaw  to  secure  an  educa- 
tion, whenever  the  proper  facilities  for  that  purpose  are  af- 
forded. 

That  the  public  attention  is  already  turning  this  way  is  too 
evident  to  need  proof.  The  "  Northern  Pacific"  is  no  longer 
a  mooted  question,  but  is  actually  in  process  of  construction, 
with  a  fair  prospect  of  making  the  straits  its  eastern  terminus, 
while  several  roads  from  the  more  southern  cities  of  this  and 
other  states  are  even  now  hastening  tow.irds  Mackinaw  to 
claim  a  share  of  the  spoils.  The  day  is  not  tar  in  the  future 
when  Mackinaw  will  be  a  railroad  centre,  as  it  is  by  nature  a 
commercial  centre,  and  these  roads  will  all  lay  their  laurels  at 
the  feet  of  the  new  city  and  rising  university. 

As  to  the  prospects  of  Mackinaw  City  and  the  wealth  of 
the  surrounding  country,  which  must  eventually  concentrate 
here,  the  following  extracts  are  in  point.     They  are  from  E. 


i68 


OLD   AND   NEW    MACKINAC. 


D.  Mansfield's  Review  of  "  Old  Mackinaw,"  by  Strickland,  as 
published  in  the  Methodist  S^iiartcrly  Rcviexv  for  June,  iS6i  : 
"  Whoever  looks  upon  the  map  of  North  America  will  be 
struck  with  the  singular  conformation  of  both  land  and  water 
roundthe  Straits  of  Mackinaw.  There  is  scarcely  anything  in 
Arrjciican  geography  more  remarkable.  The  vast  expanse  of 
American  lakes,  flowing  through  more  than  two  thousand 
miles,  and  covering  more  than  one  hundred  thousand  square 
miles  of  water  surface,  seems  here  to  concentrate,  and  the  three 
great  lakes,  Superior,  Huron,  and  Michigan — to  speak  meta- 
physically— lay  their  heads  together,  as  if  to  consider  some  no- 
table point.  Far  to  the  north-west  of  the  straits  stretches  Lake 
Superior,  with  its  clear  waters  and  its  pictured  rocks.  Far  to 
the  south  lies  Lake  Michigan,  with  its  long  arm  at  Green  Bay, 
while  to  the  south-cast  stretch  the  dark  waters  of  Huron,  with 
its  Manitou  Islands  and  Georgian  Sea.  But  vast  as  are  these 
inland  seas,  they  here  meet  together.  Superior  forms  its  waters 
through  the  Sault  of  St.  Mary's ;  Michigan  rolls  through  the 
Straits  of  Mackinaw,  and  the  magnificent  Huron  comes  up  to 
meet  them.  That  a  point  so  remarkable  by  nature  should  be- 
come equally  so  in  the  growth  of  a  young  and  rising  empire, 
seems  to  be  a  necessary  inference  from  these  facts.  There  are 
but  few  points  on  the  earth  which  j^resent  such  striking  advan- 
tages for  the  pursuits  of  commerce.  If  we  look  upon  the  map 
of  the  globe,  we  shall  find,  perhaps,  only  four  or  five  which 
have  similar  features.  The  Straits  of  Gibraltar,  separating  Eu- 
rope from  Africa ;  Constantinople,  on  the  Bosphorus ;  Singa- 
pore, on  the  Straits  of  Malacca  ;  and  the  Isthmus  of  Panama, 
are  the  only  ones  which  now  strike  us  as  presenting  a  parallel. 
Singapore  has  rapidly  concentrated  Asiatic  navigation,  and 
more  various  people  may  be  found  there  than  at  any  ocean 
point.  Panama  is  rising  to  commercial  importance  with  equal 
rapidity,  while  Gibraltar  and  Constantinople  are  world-re- 
nowned for  the  value  of  their  positions.  Mackinaw  jorescnts 
nearly  the  same  features.  Not  only  do  great  inland  seas  here 
meet  together,  but  on  every  side  of  these  waters  press  down 


MACKINAW   CITY. 


[69 


great  districts  of  land,  rich,  various,  and  abundant  in  their  re- 
sources. On  the  north  lies  the  peninsula  of  Canada,  which, 
although  long  regarded  as  barren  and  inhospitable,  has  been 
recently  proved  a  country  of  good  soil,  abundant  water,  and 
mild  climate.  To  the  south  is  the  peninsula  of  Michigan,  now 
fast  filling  up  with  a  thrifty  American  population.  To  the  west 
is  the  great  mining  region,  where  copper  and  iron  seem  in- 
exhaustible. Thus  nature  seems  to  have  made  this  place  as 
rich  in  the  materials  as  in  the  channels  of  commerce.  Nor  has 
she  placed  any  barriers  in  the  way  of  its  future  growth.  Con- 
stantinople has  its  plague,  and  Panama  its  fevers  ;  but  Macki- 
naw, grand  in  its  scenery,  and  opulent  in  its  resources,  is  equally 
salubrious  in  its  climate,  and  inviting  to  the  seekers  for  health, 
pleasure,  and  repose. 


"  Looking  now  to  the  commercial  and  industrial  develop- 
ment of  that  region,  we  find  still  more  extraordinary  results. 
Attached  to  the  State  of  Michigan  is  the  peninsula,  which  is 
inclosed  between  the  Straits  of  Mackinaw,  Lake  ^Michigan,  and 
Lake  Superior.  For  two  centuries  after  the  settlement  of  New 
England  and  New  York,  the  wild,  unfrequented,  unknown 
shores  of  Lake  Superior  were  unsuspected  of  any  other  capacity 
for  production  than  those  of  the  forest  and  the  lake.  It  is  only 
since  1S46  that  its  immense  beds  of  iron  and  copjicr  were  dis- 
covered, and  only  within  the  last  ten  yeai"s  that  that  region  has 
exhibited  a  wealth  of  mineral  production  which  the  world  can 
scarcely  parallel  on  an  equal  space.  No  sooner  were  the  facts 
known  than  copper  companies  (and  since  iron  companies)  be- 
gan to  be  formed  with  the  celerity  and  energy  of  an  excited 
speculation.  Capital  was  found  in  the  great  cities  ready  to  be 
invested  in  such  enterprises,  laborers  flocked  thither,  mines 
were  opened,  and  now  we  have  immense  bodies  of  copper  an- 
nually trans2:)orted  to  Boston,  Pittsburgh,  Cleveland,  and  other 
places,  to  be  smelted.  In  1858  the  copper  ore  exported  from 
points  in  the  Peninsula  was.  six  thousand  tons,  which  yielded 
four  thousand  tons  of  pure  copper,  worth  two  millions  of  dol- 


170 


OLD    AND   NEW    MACKINAC. 


I*' 


lars.  \»  hen  we  consider  that  this  is  one-third  the  amount  of 
copper  produced  by  Great  Britain,  and  one-seventh  of  the 
whole  amount  pro(hjccd  out  of  America,  we  can  understand 
the  value  of  these  mines,  which  have  scarcely  been  opened  ten 
years. 

"  In  the  same  region,  and  above  the  Sault  of  St.  Mary,  are 
iron  mines  equally  extraordinary.  The  United  States  has  in 
various  sections  immense  deposits  of  iron.  But  in  all  the  ba- 
sins of  the  lakes  there  is  nothing  comparable  to  this.  In  the 
vicinity  of  Marquette,  a  flourishing  port  of  Lake  Superior,  iron 
hills  rise  from  six  to  seven  hundred  feet  in  height,  which  are 
a  solid  mass  of  iron  ore.  When  smelted  in  the  furnace  they 
yield  more  than  half  in  pure  iron  of  a  superior  quality,  which 
is  in  demand  at  all  the  manufacturing  towns  of  the  east. 

"  In  the  meanwhile  the  resources  of  the  country  which 
were  obvious  to  the  eye,  were  naturally  sought  and  developed 
by  a  dirterent  class  of  persons.  The  fisheries  yielded  the  finest 
fish  in  exhaustlcss  quantities,  and  from  Sandusky  Bay,  in  Ohio, 
to  Superior  City,  in  the  wild  north-west,  the  lake  salmon  and 
the  Mackinaw  trout  are  transported,  like  the  oysters  of  the  At- 
lantic, to  gratify  the  epicurean  palate  in  town  and  city.  These 
fisheries  have  now  risen  to  great  importance.  They  are  sup- 
posed to  exceed  in  product  the  whole  of  the  other  fresh  water 
fisheries  in  the  United  States.  At  this  time  about  one  hundred 
thousand  barrels  of  fish  are  freighted,  and  the  annual  value  of 
the  fisheries  amounts  to  a  million  of  dollars. 

"  No  sooner  had  civilization  penetrated  the  wilderness  of 
Lake  Supei-ior  than  another  product  came  into  immediate  de- 
mand. I"ar  as  the  eye  could  cast  its  searching  glance,  or  the 
traveler  penetrate  the  dark  forests  of  Michigan,  of  Wisconsin, 
or  of  Canada,  there  rose  the  tall,  slim  trunks,  and  deep  green 
foliage  of  the  pine.  Here  was  material  in  which  the  people 
south  and  west  were  deficient.  The  pines  of  the  Alleghany 
and  the  Susquehanna  had  begun  to  diminish.  Their  stock 
would  soon  be  gone,  while  here  stretched  away  hundreds  and 
thousands  of  miles  of  pine  forest.      Very  soon,  as  the  settle- 


MACKINAW   CITV. 


I'/I 


ments  began  to  increase  in  Michigan,  Wisconsin,  and  Minneso- 
ta, powerful  steam  engines  were  erected  on  the  Saginaw,  the 
Sable,  Traverse  Bay,  La  Crosse  River,  St.  Peter's,  and  through- 
out the  pine  region,  creating  at  once  an  immense  trade  in  pine 
lumber.  The  great  center  of  the  pineries  at  this  time  is  in  the 
lower  peninsula  of  Micliigan,  south  of  old  Mackina  v.  This 
lumber  region  is  one  of  the  wonders  of  our  country,  and  it  is 
supposed  that  Michigan  is  the  greatest  Jumber  region  of  the 
world.  Here  are  not  only  interminable  forests  of  choice  pine, 
but  water  outlets  on  every  side.  At  the  northern  extremity  are 
the  Straits  of  Mackinaw  ;  at  the  east,  Sagina^v  and  Sable  ;  at 
the  west  is  Traverse  Bay,  the  Muskegon,  and  Grand  River ; 
while  to  the  south  is  the  northern  outlet  of  Lake  Erie.  On 
every  side  lakes  and  rivers  are  ready  to  transport  the  products 
ot  Michigan,  which  enjoys  every  ad\antage  which  belongs  to 
the  northern  temperate  zone.  As  this  immense  production, 
this  flow  inward  of  the  growing  population,  this  growtli  of  in- 
dustry, goes  on,  there  will  finally  arise  a  great  commercial  city 
on  the  straits.  Before  we  speak  of  this  let  us  glance  at  the 
commerce  of  the  lakes,  which  has  grown  already  out  of  this 
recent  development  of  mines,  and  fisheries,  and  pineries.  Even 
the  people  of  the  United  States,  accustomed  to  the  rapid  growth 
of  their  own  country,  have  scarcely  been  able  to  realize  that  of 
this  lake  commerce. 

"  But  a  very  few  years  since  scarcely  a  single  steamer  pro- 
ceeded beyond  Detroit,  and  not  five  years  since  the  newspapers 
announced  as  an  extraordinary  event  the  annual  voyage  of  a 
passenger  vessel  to  the  upper  end  of  Lake  Superior.  Recently, 
however,  the  canal  round  the  Saidt  of  St.  Mary  has  been  com- 
pleted, and  this  has  given  a  great  impetus  to  the  navigation  of 
Lake  Superior.  In  1S54  but 'two  steamboats  and  five  sail  ves- 
sels reached  Superior  City.  In  1S56,  two  years  after,  forty 
steamers  and  sixteen  sail  vessels  reached  that  port.  Now,  hun- 
dreds of  vessels  navigate  that  lake  from  one  extremity  to  the 
other.  What  the  commerce  of  this  great  northern  lake  will  be 
may  be  judged  by  the  startling   facts,  that  theve    are  now   six 


m-^ 


172 


OLD   AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


I 


tccn  luindred  vessels  navigating  the  northwestern  lakes, 
manned  by  thirteen  thousand  seamen,  and  trading  with  ports 
on  five  thousand  miles  of  lake  and  river  coasts.  The  exports 
and  imj^orts  amount  to  hundreds  of  millions  in  value,  and  are 
still  increasing  at  a  most  rapid  rate.  Since  the  continuation  of 
the  canal  round  the  Sault  of  St.  Mary,  the  annual  value  of  ex- 
ports and  imjoorts  which,  pass  through  the  Straits  of  MackinavV 
is  estimated  at  one  hundred  millions  of  dollars,  and  this  com- 
merce of  the  great  lake  will  flow  on  till  it  exceeds  that  of  the 
Caspian  or  the  Black  Sea  ;  till  its  shores  shall  be  lined  with 
cities,  and  the  story  of  Marquette,  and  the  victory  of  Pontiac, 
become  the  classic  legends  of  marveling  boyhood.  With  these 
facts  before  us,  it  is  no  surprise  to  find  that  while  the  imme- 
diate country  round  Old  Mackinaw  is  yet  a  wilderness,  an  en- 
terprising gentleman  has  laid  out  a  city  on  the  site  of  '  Old 
Mackinaw.'  There  was  one  lakl  out  years  before  at  t'^j  upper 
end  of  Lake  Superior,  and  is  now  a  large  town,  growing  with 
great  rapidity.  A/  the  Straits  of  Mackinazv^  as  ivell  as  the 
upper  end  cf  Lake  Super/or,  there  must  be  large  cities  to 
supply  the  demands  of  commerce.  It  is  not  a  matter  of 
speculation^  but  a  necessity  of  nature.  The  same  necessity 
has  already  created  Ihiffalo.,  Toledo.,  Detroit.,  Chicago.,  and 
St.  Louis.  The  demand  for  such  tozvns  on  the  shores  of 
Lakes  Huron  a?td  Superior.,  and  especially  at  the  Straits 
of  MackinazL'.,  whose  bay  and  Lake  Michigan  fow  together., 
are  obviously  far  greater  than  those  zvhich  have  already 
caused  the  growth  of  Buffalo  and  Chicago.  Tlicy  have 
grown  to  supply  the  commerce  of  comparatively  limited  dis- 
tricts. One  means  of  testing  this  is  to  apply  radial  lines  to 
the  site  of  any  city  existent  or  proposed,  so  as  to  include  what 
naturally  belongs  to  them,  and  thus  compare  them  with  one 
another.  Tlic  radial  lines  of  New  York  and  Philadelphia  ex- 
tend across  the  ocean  to  Europe  on  one  hand,  and  across  the 
mountains  to  the  Valley  of  tlie  Mississippi  on  the  otlicr.  In 
looking  to  this  fact  we  are  no  longer  surprised  that  New  York 


MACKINAW   CITV. 


173 


has  its  million  of  inhnbitants,  and  riiiladelphia  its  six  luiiulrcil 
thousand. 

"  If  we  look  to  the  radial  lines  of  Chicaj^o,  wc  find  that 
they  are  limited  on  the  south  by  the  competition  of  St.  Louis, 
and  on  the  nortli  b)-  Milwaukee.  Vet  Chicajijo,  at  the  southern 
end  of  Lake  Michigan,  has  risen  to  be  a  large  city  l)y  a  suilden 
and  extraordinary  growth,  arising  from  the  rich,  though  limited 
country  about  it.  Apply  these  radial  lines  to  Mackinaw,  and 
we  find  that  they  naturally  include  all  of  Michigan,  a  large 
part  of  Wisconsin,  and  a  large  part  of  Canada  West ;  but  in 
reference  to  zvater  yiavigation^  no  interior  site  ift  America 
is  equal  to  that  of  Mackinaxv.  Here  concentrate  the  navi- 
gation of  eighty  thousand  square  inilcs  of  water  surface^ 
ivhicJt  has  no  common  center  but  that  of  the  Straits  of 
Mackinaw.  Two  facts  must  be  observed  :  that  a  commercial 
point  which  concentrates  the  trade  of  Lakes  Superior  and 
Michigan,  must  lie  within  the  circuit  of  their  coasts  ;  but  there 
is  no  such  point  but  Mackinaw.  The  oth-^v  is,  that  the  point 
of  commerce  which  oilers  the  shortest  distance,  and  therefore 
the  cheapest,  to  the  great  markets  of  the  Atlantic,  will  be  pre- 
ferred. Mackinaw  is  five  hundred  miles  ix;arer  to  BulTalo 
than  is  Fond  du  Lac,  and  three  hundred  miles  near  than  Chi- 
cago. So  it  is  the  same  distance  nearer  to  the  Gulf  of  St. 
Lawrence,  or  the  '  ity  of  New  York.  It  is  on  the  south  side 
only,  through  the  peninsula  of  Michigan,  and  toward  the 
States  of  Indiana  and  Ohio,  that  the  position  of  Mackinaw 
seems  deficient  in  communications.  But  we  no  sooner  see  this 
than  we  sec  also  two  great  lines  of  railroad,  progressing  from 
the  south  through  the  peninsula  toward  Mackinaw.  The  one 
passes  on  the  west  side  from  Fort  Wayne  (Indiana)  through 
Grand  Rapids  and  Traverse  Bay.  The  other  through  Lansing 
and  Amboy ;  both  terminating  on  the  north  at  Mackinaw,  and 
both,  by  connection  with  Indiana  and  Ohio  roads,  at  Cincin- 
nati on  the  south,  thence  they  will  soon  be  carried  to  the 
orange-growing  shores  of  Florida.  Thus  may  some  future 
traveler  be  borne  in  a  few  hours  from  the  soft  air  of  the  south- 


tti 


174 


OLD   AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


ern  Atlantic  to  the  keen  breezes  of  the  north,   and  bathe  his 
huiguid  hmbs  in  the  clear  cold  waters  of  Michigan. 

"  Tlius  briefly  have  we  followed  the  facts  presented  by 
Mr.  Strickland,  till  we  find  ourselves  again  standing  on  the  site 
of  '  Old  Mackinaw  ; '  no  more  the  single,  lonely  spot  of  civil- 
ization amid  red  warriors  and  Alpine  forests,  but  just  emerg- 
ing to  light  amid  a  wonderful  growth  of  people,  of  commerce, 
of  industry,  and  art.  The  forests  still  stand,  scarcely  broken  ; 
but  the  sound  of  the  advancing  host,  whicli  is  to  level  them 
with  the  ground  and  build  up  the  structures  of  civil  society, 
cannot  be  mistaken.  They  come  with  the  heavy  tread  and 
confused  noise  of  an  army  with  banners. 

"  The  growth  of  the  American  vStates,  as  we  have  said, 
is  from  the  outer  to  the  inner  circles ;  from  the  shores  of  the 
Atlantic  and  the  Pacific,  from  the  Bay  of  St.  Lawrence  and 
the  mouths  of  the  Hudson  and  the  Mississippi,  toward  the  in- 
terior. Then  we  had  Boston,  New  York,  Qiiebcc,  and  New 
Orleans,  long  before  we  had  Pittsburgh,  Cincinnati,  St.  Louis, 
and  Chicago,  which  are  the  second  growth  when  the  wave 
flowed  over  the  AUeghanics.  Again  the  wave  is  flowing  from 
the  valleys  of  the  St.  Lawrence,  the  Ohio,  and  the  Mississippi, 
into  the  great  central  basin  of  the  lakes,  which,  lying  in  the 
very  center  of  the  North  American  continent,  are  the  last  to 
receive,  as  they  will  ultimately  concentrate,  the  great  moving 
mass  of  humanity  and  civilization.  The  circles  are  growing 
narrower,  and  Mackinaw,  which  was  the  center  of  Indian  and 
of  missionary  romance,  will  finally  become  one  of  the  great 
centers  of  commercial  growth  and  social  progress,  presenting 
the  contrast  between  the  solitudes  of  nature  and  the  wild  life 
of  the  Indian,  on  one  hand,  with  'lie  busy  activity  of  modern 
society,  its  multitude  of  people,  au  1  the  wonderful  arts. 

''  The  steady,  uninterrupted  growth  of  our  country,  which 
no  other  nation  can  now  interrupt,  aflbrds  at  once  the  moral  evi- 
dence that  what  we  have  seen  of  growth  and  development  in  the 
past,  will  be  exhibited  in  a  progressive  line  through  the  future 
till  ages  have  passed  away.     We  have  seen  from  t1 . .  little  set- 


C:.^m»i 


CHEBOYGAN. 


175 


tlements  at  Plymouth  and  Jamestown  their  grachial  growth 
inward  till  cities  arose  along  our  coasts  which  rival  the  largest 
of  ancient  nations.  We  have  seen  them  again  extending  along 
the  Ohio  and  the  ]Mississippi,  till  great  to  vns,  filled  witii  com- 
merce and  with  arts,  arose  upon  their  bawKs.  We  have  seen 
them  enter  the  basin  of  the  lakes,  till  Buftalo  spreads  itself 
along  the  rapids  of  Niagara,  till  Chicago  looms  up  in  a  day, 
and  St.  Paid  looks  down  from  the  far  North-Wcst.  Why 
should  not  this  movement  continue?  What  wljould  interrupt 
it.''  We  may  imagine  the  beautiful  shores  '/f  Hiu'on  and  Su- 
perior alive  with  the  chariots  of  commerce,  and  gleaming  with 
the  spires  of  beautiful  towns.  Here,  where  we  have  stood  on 
the  site  of  '  Old  Mackinaw,'  beholding  its  world  of  waters,  we 
seem  to  sec,  shining  in  the  morning  sun,  some  metropolis  of 
the  lakes,  some  B\zantium,  presiding  yvcr  the  seas  which  lave 
its  shores.  Here,  perhaps,  in  those  bright  days  of  triumphant 
civilization,  some  pilgrim  student  may  inquire  for  the  grave  of 
Marquette,  may  read  the  story  of  Pontiac,  and  lament  the  woes 
of  that  ,  ild  nation  v.-ho  once  frequented  the  shores  of  Huron, 
and  sung  their  last  songs  round  the  '  Pequod'e'non'ge '  of  the 
Indian,  the  ^/ackinaw  of  the  whites." 


CIIEnOVGAN. 

This  young  and  thriving  town,  to  which  the  attention  of 
the  business  and  pleasure-seeking  public  is  thus  respectfully 
called,  has  a  pojoulation  of  about  fifteen  hundred.  It  has  four 
good  hotels,  ten  or  twelve  stores  and  groceries,  two  churches 
in  process  of  erection,  a  jewelry  store,  furniture  store,  black- 
smith and  carriage  shops,  grist  mill,  two  good  shingle  mills,  six 
large  saw  mills,  etc..  etc.  Situated  at  the  mouth  of  the  Che- 
boygan River,  its  location  is  one  of  the  finest  and  most  advan- 
tageous in  the  State. 

Six  miles  in  the  interior  is  Mullet's  Lake,  some  twelve 
miles  in  length  by  five  or  six  in  breadtli.  vStill  further  back  is 
Burt  Lake,  nearly  as  large.     Other  lakes  of  smaller  dimensions 


176 


OLD   AND    NEW    MACKINAC. 


continue  the  chain  to  within  five  miles  of  Little  Traverse,  with 
a  depth  of  water  in  the  connecting  rivers  sufficient  for  small 
steam  crafts.  Three  miles  above  the  town  Black  River  pours 
into  the  Cheboygan  from  the  south.  This  is  also  navigable  for 
the  distance  of  nine  miles.  Numerous  smaller  rivers  empty 
into  the  Black,  the  sources  of  which  are  far  in  the  interior,  so 
that,  in  all,  between  three  and  four  counties  ilnd  a  natural  out- 
let through  the  Cheboygan-  River. 

About  one-half  of  this  large  tract  of  country  is  covered  with 
a  heavy  growth  of  pine,  while  the  other  half  is  as  heavily  tim- 
bered with  beech  and  maple,  and  will  make  the  best  of  farming 
lands.      Cheboygan  is  the  only  natural  outlet. 

These  lakes  and  rivers  abound  in  a  great  variety  of  fish — 
trout,  jDickerel,  bass,  etc. — and  the  forests  upon  their  banks  are 
filled  with  wild  game,  thus  afibrding  sportsmen  the  largest 
scope  for  enjoyment.  No  more  desirable  or  satisfactory  pleas- 
lu-e  trip  could  be  made  than  one  up  this  beautiful  chain  of  lakes 
and  rivers. 


'X^jSmpWiv 


ADVEKTISEMENTS. 


h 

ill 

rs 

or 

ty 

so 

.it- 

ith 
m- 
ng 

1 — 
arc 
;est 
:;as- 
.kes 


MISSION  HOUSE. 


E.  A.  FRANKS,    -    Proprietor, 


MACKINAC,  MICH. 


This  old  and  favorite  Hotel  is  most  delightfully  situated  on  the 
romantic  Island  of  Mackinac,  within  a  short  distance  of  the  water's 
edge,  and  contiguous  to  Arch  Rock,  Sugar  Loaf,  and  other  Natural 
Curiosities  in  which  this  famous  island  abounds.     Eoats  to  let. 

June,  1870. 


MCLEOD  HOUSE. 


R.  McLEOD, 


Proprietor, 


MACKINAC,  MICH. 


FOR  SALE. 

The  above-mentioned  House,  containing  thirty  sleeping  rooms, 
two  parlors,  office,  barber  shop,  laundry,  bath  room,  etc.,  etc.,  fur- 
nished throughout;  also,  a  good  horse,  cow,  buggy,  dray,  harnesses, 
and  sltigh,  together  with  the  adjoining  store-house,  formerly  head- 
quarters of  the  American  Fur  Company.  Will  all  be  sold  for  $6,000. 
Inquire  of  or  address  the  proprietor. 

Junk,   1870. 


ADVERTISEMENTS. 


ISLAND  HOUSE. 


Capt.  H.  VAN  ALLEN,   Prop. 


MACKINAC,  MICH. 


B.  C.  FREEMAN'S 


VOICE.  WALTZ.  AND 


QUADRILLE  BAND 


HAS  AGAIN  RETURNED  FROM  CLEVELAND. 

And  is  prepared  to  furnish  Music   for  Balls,  Parties,  and  Reunions   on 
sliort  notice.     Also,  Shavin;;- and    Hair-Cutting  d'     e  in  the  best  jtyle. 
June,    1870. 


H.  R.  MILLS,  M.  D., 


PHYSICIAN  AND  SURGEON 


MACKINAC,  MICHIGAN. 


June,  1870. 


A.  A.  SURGEON,  U.  3.  A. 


ADVKUTISEMENTS. 


BROMILOW  &  BxVFES, 

MACKINAC.  ^riCII., 

And  E.  E.  Rromilow  &  Co.,  Cliica-jo,  111.,  STEAMBOAT,  WHARF 
AS'D   GENERAL  STORE. 

FISHERMENS'  SUPPLIES. 

Inspected  Fish  ibr  sale  and  orders  to  puirhase  solicited. 
E.  E.  liROiMILOW.    Chicago.  JOHN  !)ATES,  Mucki/i.tc. 


GEORGE  W.  STIMSON. 

N^ACKINAC  CITY,  MIfll, 

REFRESHMENTS 

KEPT    CONSTANTLY    OS    HAND. 

lodginct  furnished,    horses  to  let. 

June.  1870 


MCKAY  HOUSE. 


JOHN  McKAY,    -    Proprietor, 


CHEBOYGAN,  MICH. 


GOOD  HORSES  AND  CARRIAGES  TO  LET. 


ADVERTISEMENTS. 


THE  GRACE  DORMER. 


This  last  and  Beautiful  Steamer  will  form  a  daily  freight  and  pas- 
senger line  between  Mackinac  Island,  Cheboygan,  and  Mackinac  City. 
She  will  also  make 

PLEASURE  EXCURSIONS 

FOR  WHICH  SHE  IS  ESPECIALLY  ADAPTED. 

To  the  Chenoux,  Carp  River,  St.  Ignace,  LaCrosse  Village,  the  inter- 
esting and  historic  "  Old  Fort  Michilirnackinac,"  and  other  places  of 
interest  or  pleasure,  whenever  desired. 

CLOSE  CONNECTION  MADE  AT  CHE  BO  TG  AN 

With  smaller  boats  running  to  Mullet's  and  Burt  Lake**,  etc. 

F.  M.  SAMMONS. 
R.  PATTERSON, 
June,   1S70.  O-vncrs.  Cheboygan,  Mich. 

THE  MARINE  CITY. 


This    fast    and    commodious    side-wheel    .steamek   will    uxake 
Aveekly  trips  from 

DETROIT  TO  MACKINAC 

Touching  at  Cheboygan,  Crawford's  Qi  arry,  Ali'kna,  Harris- 
viLLE,  Sauble,  Forestville,  and  all  intermediate  Lake  Shore 
Ports,  and  connecting  at  Alpena  with  the  Metropolis  for  Bay  City 
and  Saginaw.     Special  attention  given  to  the 

SAFETY  AND  COMFORT  OF  EXCURSIONISTS 


She  will  leave  Detroit  every  Monday  at  10   P.  M.,  and   Mackinac 
every  Thursday  at  7  P.  M.     Fare  for  the  round  trip,  $12. 
Junk,  1870. 


